Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Experiment Videos

A possible selves intervention to enhance school involvement.

Daphna Oyserman1, Kathy Terry, Deborah Bybee

  • 1Daphna Oyserman, Institute for Social Research, University of Michigan, 426 Thompson, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1248, USA. daphna.@umich.edu

Journal of Adolescence
|July 20, 2002
PubMed
Summary

This study shows an after-school program improved urban youth's school bonding and attendance by helping them envision future success. The intervention connected future aspirations to current school engagement for better outcomes.

Related Concept Videos

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Can I make the time or is it running out? That depends in part on what difficulty implies about me.

Journal of personality and social psychology·2026
Same author

Collectivism and meaning-making: A search for moderators.

PloS one·2026
Same author

Identity-Based Motivation: Testing Assumptions of Ecological Validity, Individual Differences and Within-Person Fluctuations.

Journal of personality·2026
Same author

Perspectives on Time and Personality: Philip G. Zimbardo (1934-2024) in Memoriam.

Journal of personality·2026
Same author

Costly Morality Theory of Honor: An Evolutionary, Culture-as-Situated-Cognition Perspective.

Personality and social psychology review : an official journal of the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, Inc·2025
Same author

Social anxiety and work: a qualitative investigation in a low-income, minority sample.

Social work in mental health·2025

Area of Science:

  • Educational Psychology
  • Adolescent Development
  • Intervention Studies

Background:

  • Youth often struggle to connect future aspirations with present academic efforts.
  • Targeted interventions can bridge the gap between future self-imagination and school engagement.
  • African American urban youth face unique challenges in academic motivation and future planning.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To evaluate an after-school program designed to enhance adolescents' future self-imagination.
  • To connect these imagined future selves to current school involvement and academic outcomes.
  • To assess the program's impact on school bonding, attendance, and behavior.

Main Methods:

  • A 9-week, small-group, activities-based intervention was implemented.

Related Experiment Videos

  • The study compared three cohorts of urban African American middle school students (n=62 experimental, n=146 control).
  • Statistical controls for sex and prior school involvement were applied.

    • Main Results:

    • Intervention youth reported increased bonding to school and concern for academic performance.
    • Participants developed more balanced "possible selves" and plausible strategies to achieve them.
    • Improvements included better school attendance; boys also showed reduced school disciplinary issues.

    Conclusions:

    • The intervention effectively enhanced students' ability to envision successful adult selves.
    • Connecting future aspirations to current schoolwork positively impacts engagement and behavior.
    • This program offers a viable strategy for improving academic outcomes in urban youth.