AVSI Foundation – USAID/SCORE ProjectPsychosocial support Forum - Victoria falls in Zimbabwe.

Rita LAROK OTIM

Impact of life skills training on resilience of orphaned and vulnerable adolescents and youth

Sustainable Comprehensive Responses for Vulnerable children and their families (SCORE) at a glance

• Donor: USAID/PEPFAR • Implementation: AVSI Foundation with CARE, TPO, FHI360• Duration: May 2011-Apr 2016, Budget: 32.6m USD• Coverage: 35 districts in Uganda.• Goal: To decrease the vulnerability of moderately and critically

vulnerable children (VC) and their households.• RA 1: Improved socio-economic status of OVC families.• RA 2: Improved food security and nutrition.• RA3: Improve access to protection and legal services.• RA 4: Increased capacity to access acquire or provide critical

services --- Interventions: Parenting, LIFE SKILLS..

Life skills ApproachDescriptionTarget• Adolescents 12-18 and

youth 19-35 in and out of school

Approach• Group and modular

trainings • 1-2 week practice breaks• Pre and post training

assessments

Research group:• # 553 sample participants

from 35 districts• Average age: 18• Gender: 48% F (267) and 52%

M (286)• Period of research:

2013/2014

Life skills-Activity based modules

• Module 1:Getting Started • Module 2:Knowing myself • Module 3:Relationships• Module 4:Coping with Emotions• Module 5: Passive, Aggressive &

Assertive Behavior• Module 6: Growing up • Module 7: Communication• Module 8: Decision Making• Module 9: Substance Abuse• Module 10:Reaching my Goals

and Dreams

Theory of Change - Parameters

• Relationships – strength and quality • Coping with Emotions – Feelings/ Mood• Handling Conflict – Ladder with levels• Communication skills - Quality• Psychosocial wellbeing - Scale

Results: Relationships

• Significant improvements in the proportion of strong, fair and not close relationships

Relationships 1Broken 2Not close 3Fair 4Strong Grand Total1Broken 1.0% 0.3% 0.3% 0.5% 2.0%2Not close 0.1% 9.2% 5.6% 5.9% 20.8%3Fair 0.3% 1.2% 19.9% 17.7% 39.1%4Strong 0.1% 0.8% 2.9% 34.4% 38.1%Grand Total 1.3% 11.6% 28.6% 58.5% 100%

Results: Coping with emotions

Significant REDUCTION in Anger p-value: 0.0000

ANGRY 1-low 2-average 3-high Grand Total1-low 85 26 13 1242-average 42 29 13 843-high 156 68 69 293Grand Total 283 123 95 501

ANGRY

Results: Coping with emotions

Significant Improvements in Happinessp-value: 0.0000

HappyHAPPY 1-low 2-average 3-high Grand Total1-low 6 4 29 392-average 8 52 603-high 9 16 377 402Grand Total 15 28 458 501

Results: Coping with emotions: Nervous

NERVOUS 1-low 2-average 3-high Grand Total1-low 229 27 18 2742-average 35 18 6 593-high 101 23 44 168Grand Total 365 68 68 501

SAD 1-low 2-average 3-high Grand Total1-low 97 16 12 1252-average 143 78 12 2333-high 61 33 49 143Grand Total 301 127 73 501

SHY 1-low 2-average 3-high Grand Total1-low 119 23 17 1592-average 71 38 12 1213-high 135 37 49 221Grand Total 325 98 78 501

Significant REDUCTION in children nervous (p-value: 0.0000)

Results: Coping with emotions: Sad

NERVOUS 1-low 2-average 3-high Grand Total1-low 229 27 18 2742-average 35 18 6 593-high 101 23 44 168Grand Total 365 68 68 501

SAD 1-low 2-average 3-high Grand Total1-low 97 16 12 1252-average 143 78 12 2333-high 61 33 49 143Grand Total 301 127 73 501

SHY 1-low 2-average 3-high Grand Total1-low 119 23 17 1592-average 71 38 12 1213-high 135 37 49 221Grand Total 325 98 78 501

Significant REDUCTION in Sadness p-value: 0.0000

Results: Coping with emotions: Shy

NERVOUS 1-low 2-average 3-high Grand Total1-low 229 27 18 2742-average 35 18 6 593-high 101 23 44 168Grand Total 365 68 68 501

SAD 1-low 2-average 3-high Grand Total1-low 97 16 12 1252-average 143 78 12 2333-high 61 33 49 143Grand Total 301 127 73 501

SHY 1-low 2-average 3-high Grand Total1-low 119 23 17 1592-average 71 38 12 1213-high 135 37 49 221Grand Total 325 98 78 501

Results: Handling Conflict – Ladder with levels

Results: Conflict Ladder

Significant Improvements in Conflict management

Conflcit Ladder 1 2 3 4 Grand Total1 14.6% 7.5% 3.2% 0.2% 25.5%2 12.0% 14.2% 3.4% 0.4% 30.0%3 9.2% 22.3% 3.7% 0.6% 35.8%4 3.2% 3.7% 1.7% 0.2% 8.8%Grand Total 39.0% 47.8% 12.0% 1.3% 100.0%

Results: Communication skills - Quality

• Less Not good communicators BUT more aggressive communicators

Results: Psychosocial wellbeing - Scale

• Significant improvements in psychosocial wellbeing

Timing n Std. Err Mean t p-value

Pretest 438 0.027 2.89 -16.3 0.0000

Posttest 438 0.017 3.39

Assessment based on Paired sample t-test using an index of psychosocial wellbeing

Conclusions • AVSI Foundation USAID/SCORE Life skills training does have a significant effect on improving resilience of adolescents and youth

Thank you!Contacts:Rita Larok

Tel: +256771497551Email: rita.larok@avsi.org

and SCORE Secretariat Tel: 0312-501614

secretariat.score@avsi.orghttp://www.score.or.ug