by: Leo Preston, Teen CHARGE Production Manager

When it comes to parenting, a goal you may have for your child is for them to live a holistic healthy life (social, emotional, intellectual, physical, spiritual, and vocational/recreational), so that they may become a confident, independent adult. Although this may be the goal, there are factors in life that can either help or hinder the child’s holistic growth and development. These are called risk and protective factors.

Risk factors are conditions/situations that increase the likelihood of someone engaging in risky behaviors (substance use/violence/unsafe sexual practices), engaging in or staying in unhealthy relationships, acquiring a mental health issue, and/or exasperating an already existing mental health issue. These factors in a person’s life can be paralleled to the weakened wall of a castle’s defenses which make it easier for invaders to take over the castle keep.

Protective factors, on the other hand, are conditions/situations that inhibit or reduce the likelihood of someone engaging in unsafe relationships or risky behaviors, acquiring a mental health issue, and/or exasperating a current mental health issue. These factors in a person’s life can be equated to a castle’s warriors that fend off invaders, despite the weakened structure of the castle’s wall.

Now that these factors have been defined, it is important to note that risk and protective factors are derived from multiple facets in a person’s life: Family, Community, School, and Individual. Consider the below picture:

Risk Factors	Protective Factors
Community
Poverty Limited access to healthcare Poor community resources Neighborhood crime and violence Few recreational outlets Social discrimination Overcrowding Exposure to trauma/violence	Range of supportive adults Access to effective services Strong resources religious institutions Neighborhood safety Supervised recreation
Family
Family history of mental illness Parental crime/incarceration Familial abuse/neglect Familial substance abuse Lack of parental support Family isolation Large family size Death of a caregiver Chronic Illness (Physical/Mental)	Familial support Familial focus on wellness Family life with clear rules Consistent  enforcement
School
Underachieving schools Peer rejection/isolation	Strong school involvement Quality schools Strong school-home bond
Individual/Peer
Impulsivity Aggressive/violent behavior Disregard for others Sensation seeking Attachment issues Poor Interpersonal Boundaries Hopelessness Low Self-Esteem Exposure to Alcohol & Drugs Low Intelligence Substance Use Apathy/Emotional Blunting Unhealthy relationships Traumatic events Delinquency	Self-Control Decision-making skills Good social skills Cares for others Healthy eating habits Healthy physical wellness Practicing spirituality Strong boundaries Hopeful Positive self-outlook Appropriate attachment Good communication skills Regulates emotion

These lists may not include everything, but it definitely provides a strong look into the depth of factors that affect the development of your student’s holistic health.

Since then, the relationship between the two factors is important especially when considering the idea of building resilience. Resilience is a person’s ability to “bounce back” from adverse conditions or situations. Essentially, resilience is when a person is moving forward despite the effects of the risk factors in their life. According to a study done by the National Institute for Mental Health, it was concluded that a person’s resilience is made stronger when the protective factors outweigh the risk factors.

Now then, as you continue to parent your child towards the goal of living a healthy holistic life, help your student to identify the current risk and protective factors in their life. Through this process, if it becomes evident that there are more risk factors than protective factors, then it would be beneficial to brainstorm ways to increase the protective factors. This may or may not be difficult to do; however, it will help you and your student to build resilience for life.

NOTE: One place to start talking about protective factors could be going through the an asset checklist with your student found here:
https://www.search-institute.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/AssetChecklist.pdf

References

About Whole Person Wellness. (20 May 2019). Retrieved from            http://hdcs.fullerton.edu/csa/WholePerson/about.htm

D. (20 May 2019). Risk and Protective Factors. Retrieved from            https://www.americanmentalwellness.org/prevention/risk-and-protective-factors/

Vanderbilt-Adriance, E., & Shaw, D. S. (2008, August). Protective factors and the development  of resilience in the context of neighborhood disadvantage. Retrieved from            https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2683035/