Secondary Traumatic Stress: Recognizing the Unique Risks for Youth Ministry
Christopher T. Marchand

               Secondary Traumatic Stress has been defined as the natural, consequent behaviors and emotions resulting from knowledge of a traumatizing event. It is the stress resulting from helping or wanting to help a traumatized or suffering person. Those in youth ministry face unique risks as they engage in empathetic care. This paper will present this concept and its potential impact on the youth pastor. In addition, the paper will detail the unique risk factors for youth pastors and will encourage youth ministry educators to consider the nature of our role in the academy, as we help students to consider the subtle residual impact of the traumatic event.

Yellow on White Background: Korean American Youth Ministry and
the Challenge of Constructing Korean American Identity
Kil Jae Park

               Identity-formation for any cultural group living in a second cultural environment is difficult. The impact of such identity-formation on the philosophy and provision of youth ministry is enormous. This article explores the interaction between youth ministry and the identity-formation of young Korean Americans.

Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count: An Unobtrusive Strategy to Evaluate Youth Camps
Wendell C. Taylor, Patricia Liehr, Donna Y. Laws, Shamim Ahsan,
Thelissa Edwards, Thomas Walker, and Marianne T. Marcus

               Many youth attend camps and they can be a transformative experience for young people. This makes youth camps especially interesting to faith-based ministries. Unobtrusive strategies to evaluate the success of youth camps have not been adequately studied, and effective strategies are needed to assess camp outcomes. The objective of this study was to evaluate a faith-based youth camp using written self-disclosures and linguistic analysis. Attendees participated in a self-disclosure writing exercise immediately before and after the camp.  Attendees were African American middle-school boys and girls. Linguistic analysis was followed by statistical analyses to assess differences between pre- and post-camp writings based on the camp's curriculum objectives. These objectives included religious inspiration, introspection, and taking a stand.  Significant differences were found for introspection and taking a stand, but not for religious inspiration.

Tassel Flipping: A Portrait of the Well-Educated Youth Ministry Graduate
Andrew S. Jack and Barrett W. McRay

               The purpose of this study is to develop a profile of youth ministry programs from the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities (CCCU) and the graduates they produce based upon responses from the department chairs or professors leading those programs. This research was guided by two grand tour research questions: (1) What, in your judgment, is a well-trained graduate emerging from the Youth Ministry program at your school? (2) How is your program designed to meet these stated outcomes in the training of these emerging Youth Ministry graduates?
               The results of the qualitative analysis are presented as a first step in understanding the general themes prevalent among CCCU youth ministry education programs and their vision for competently trained youth ministers. The goal of this study is to increase our understanding of current youth ministry education programs and to facilitate dialog regarding our visions of ideal youth ministry graduates.

An Analysis of Factors Affecting Adolescent Attitudes Toward Cohabitation Before Marriage
Rhonda Johnson

               Adolescents at a Southern Baptist Evangelism Conference in Louisiana were surveyed to determine the relationship between attitude toward cohabitation and selected variables including faith maturity level, current grade, parent's current marital status, and parent's past living arrangement. The purposes were to determine the effect these variables had on adolescent's view of cohabitation and to be able to compare the results with previous studies given to youth in the general population. Five Chi-Square tests were used in the study and significant results were then tested with Cramer's Phi to determine the strength of the relationship. The results of the tests revealed that a relationship existed between each of the variables and attitudes toward cohabitation.

The Needs of Youth Ministry at the Turn of the Century: Hearing the Voice of the People
Kara Powell, Pamela Ebstyne King, and Chapman Clark

               As youth and family ministry has evolved over the decades to reach young people for Christ and meet the growing changes of contemporary youth and families, youth worker training and education programs have attempted to keep pace. Despite these efforts, youth workers often feel under-prepared for the diverse challenges of faith-based youth work. As a descriptive study, the current curricular needs of potential youth workers through a Voice of the Customer methodology were investigated. Through 34 interviews with practitioner, educator, and trainer experts, a hierarchy of needs was built from the 711 needs extracted. Five areas of curriculum were identified: theological foundations, youth development, family dynamics, emerging global youth culture, and multi-cultural perspectives. Implications for practice and training are discussed.

Don't Make Jesus Cry: A Qualitative Analysis of
Spiritual Autobiographies of Older Teenagers
Delia Nüesch-Olver

               This article utilizes principles of qualitative research to analyze spiritual autobiographies of students during their first year at a Christian college. The article examines how older Christian teenagers reflect on their church experience and the spiritual formation they received during their high school years.  Common themes from the spiritual journey of teenagers include: the importance of mentoring and modeling, how students understand the breadth of the Body of Christ, the Americanization of Jesus, the development of both dissociative and associate connections, how students perceive the relevance of the Christian faith, and the impact of mission trip experiences.