Role models are people who can shape the way children think and behave. They act as support figures outside the home. Having a supportive and caring adult to turn to is important for promoting positive child and youth well-being and development.[1] Research shows that children and youth who have a positive role model in their life are more likely to be more engaged in school and work, have fewer behavioural problems, higher self-esteem, participate in activities outside of school, and engage in physical activity.[1],[2]
Senior kindergarten parents who report positive role model in their neighbourhood |
About the MeasureThis measure comes from the Kindergarten Parent Survey (KPS), a questionnaire completed by parents of senior kindergarten students. The KPS asks parents if there are adults in their neighbourhood that their children can look up to. Parents can respond "true," "sometimes true," or "not true." This measure presents data on parents who responded "true" in 2015. The 2018 KPS was administered in Dufferin, but not Wellington and Guelph. If you would like to access 2018 KPS data for Dufferin, please contact Jane Hall at County of Dufferin Children’s Services: jahall@dufferincounty.ca Key FindingsOverall, senior kindergarten parents from Wellington (74.6%) and Dufferin (72.5%) were slightly more likely than parents in Guelph (68.9%) to report that there are adults in their neighbourhood for their children to look up to. The rates vary greatly at the municipal level. This data can be found in the downloadable Excel file at the bottom of this page.
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Source: Kindergarten Parent Survey, 2015. Prepared by the County of Dufferin and the County of Wellington. WDG Report Card Coalition (distributor). Last updated August, 2016. LimitationsThe KPS is completed voluntarily and may be subject to underreporting and response bias. Certain sub-groups of the population are less likely to respond to voluntary surveys. As a result, the data may not be representative of the entire population. Also, children may have adult role models in other settings, such as their daycare or sports team. As a result, the data may be an underestimate of the percentage of children who have adult role models in their lives.
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Youth who report having at least one adult to talk to about their problems |
About the MeasureThis measure is collected from the Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph (WDG) Youth Survey that gathers self-reported well-being data from grade 7 and 10 students. The survey asks students who they can talk to about their problems. Students who indicate at least one adult are considered to have an adult to talk to about their problems. Key FindingsMore grade 7 than grade 10 students reported having at least one adult to talk to. Fewer non-binary students than male and female students reported having at least one adult to talk to. Data at the municipal level can be found in the downloadable Excel file at the bottom of this page.
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Source: WDG Youth Survey, 2017-18. WDG Report Card Coalition. Last updated October 1, 2018. LimitationsThe 2017-18 survey asked students who they could talk to about their problems. The response options did not include a “no one” category, therefore it is not possible to distinguish students who did not have anyone to talk to from students who skipped the question. As a result, the percentage of students who reported having an adult to talk to about their problems is likely underestimated. The WDG Youth Survey collects self-reported data and is subject to response bias and recall bias.
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[1] Murphey, D., Bandy, T., Schmitz, H., & Moore, K.A. (2013). Caring adults: Important for positive child well-being. Bethesda, MD: Child Trend. Available at: https://www.childtrends.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/2013-54CaringAdults.pdf
[2] DuBois, D. L., & Silverthorn, N. (2005). Natural mentoring relationships and adolescent health: Evidence from a national study. American journal of public health, 95(3), 518-524.