Learning from success with at risk adolescents

"I am reborn...and that will help me succeed" this sentence exemplifies the meaning of success among youth at risk. "Learning from success" is a system that advocates learning from clients who succeeded. This chapter reports on research that examined the parameters of success among youth at risk. Interviews were conducted with six youth living at the "House on Haim street" or the apartment belonging to the "Sachlav" project, as well as with the instructors and the manager of the "House". We chose adolescents who were identified as youth that succeeded in improving their condition. When we examined the data to determine what helped them make the change, several categories evolved: 1. Past behavior (anti-social behavior, low self esteem), 2. The change process (helping others without receiving compensation, listening understanding and accepting others, taking responsibility for ones behavior, a change in the social environment and degree of integration into a normative environment), 3. The change point (fear of alternatives, relationship to others). The important factors in the change process were: fear of the alternative such as going to jail or being kicked out of the "House", and the relationship with others in the "House". If these findings are replicated in further studies using additional populations, it will help to shape interventions with youth at risk.