Resources

• Practice Unbound: A Study of Secular Spiritual and Religious Activities in Work with Adolescents.
  This report provides one of the first comprehensive looks at the ways human service agencies are introducing secular spiritual and religious programming in work with troubled adolescents. Of a random sample of nearly 200 youth-serving agencies, reaching from the U.S. eastern seaboard to Alaska, Hawaii and Guam, 60% report using at least one secular activity – guided visualization and 12-step groups are the most common – and 35% offer at least one religious activity. Both secular and faith-based organizations that already offer spiritual activities strongly support them and intend to do more, but say they need more training. Of those agencies resistant to incorporating spiritual activities, many cite the dearth of conclusive evidence showing that it is beneficial. Others claim they lack time, money and manpower. And still others have the impression that instituting such programs, especially those with religious content, could jeopardize board and community support as well as public funding. In fact, though, the risk of losing government funding appears to be minimal.

• A Part of You So Deep: What Vulnerable Adolescents Have to Say About Spirituality
  This groundbreaking report is the second in a series by New England Network for Child, Youth & Family Services exploring spirituality in the lives of troubled adolescents. The first report, Practice Unbound, examined the therapeutic use of spiritually oriented activities by 200 youth-service agencies across the country. 'A Part of You So Deep' focuses on teens themselves, using extensive focus group interviews, personal interviews and surveys to uncover their experiences of spirituality and their attitudes toward a variety of spiritual activities, both secular and religious. The findings, full of passion, confusion, disappointment, and yearning, illuminate the complicated inner world of our society's most vulnerable teenagers, and offer crucial insight to counselors, teachers and anyone else committed to nurturing the spiritual lives of young people