Gratitude, generosity and hope: perspectives of opportunity youth and observations of their caseworkers

Purpose Although studies have examined character virtues among youth, few have explored the perspectives of young people who move from disconnection with social structures to reconnection and engagement—often referred to as “opportunity youth”—through the lens of positive youth development. Design/methodology/approach This qualitative study explores gratitude, generosity and hope from the experience of youth receiving social services to support stability in the transition to adulthood and the observations of their caseworkers. Findings Focus groups with 23 opportunity youth and individual interviews with 10 caseworkers reveal that youth connected gratitude to spirituality for the help they had received and viewed helping peers as a chance to give back and pay it forward. Caseworkers’ accounts concurred. Despite having limited resources, opportunity youth reflected on and valued generosity as contributing to positive outcomes for themselves and their peers. Some caseworkers expressed concerns about opportunity youth’s generosity being exploited. Most opportunity youth saw hope as a guiding philosophy, while some noted that experiences of hopelessness also shaped their understanding of hope. Some caseworkers were concerned about the hesitancy of opportunity youth to hope due to fear of disappointment. Practical implications The views of opportunity youth on integrating character education into youth services are discussed. Originality/value Findings have implications for character education from the voices of opportunity youth and their caseworkers through strength perspectives relative to a deficit-centered lens.