Participatory-democratic work and adolescents' mental health

Five arguments are advanced for the proposition that participatory-democratic workplaces best promote the mental health of adolescents. These arguments are based on (a) adolescent development theory, (b) research on adolescent work, (c) the goal of preparing adolescents to assume optimally healthful adult jobs, (d) the proposition that participatory-democratic work is optimal for all workers, and (e) the trend toward increased worker participation in adult workplaces. This rationale is given an initial test by means of case studies of three adolescent work settings, one of which was participatory-democratic by the authors' definition. Only the adolescents in this work setting showed statistically significant growth in work-related social reasoning as measured by a pre- and poststructural interview.