Child and Adolescent Development

FrameWorks has the world’s largest body of framing research on children and adolescents. It is used around the world to create change.

This research provides an overarching framing strategy to effectively communicate about a wide range of issues that affect children and young people.

Certain assumptions about children, youth, and families come up again and again.

To communicate effectively, advocates need to be able to navigate these dominant beliefs.

The tested frames come from research on six continents and have pushed policy in progressive directions at local, state, national, and international levels. Join this global narrative shift effort by exploring these resources.

Featured Work

Toolkit

Reframing Adolescence and Adolescent Development

This toolkit is a resource for communicators who want to change the narrative about adolescence and adolescent development.

Report

Collective Caregiving: A Frame for Talking About What Kids and Families Need to Thrive

We all love our kids. We often love our neighbors', friends', and coworkers' kids. So why haven't we, in the U.S., built systems that support all of our kids? If we want to build demand for...

Report

Talking About Racism in Child and Family Advocacy

As the field seeks to lead a more public conversation about the impacts of racism on children and families—and about how racism structures the systems that children and families interact...

All work

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Report

Building Strong Brains in Tennessee

This impact brief traces the way that reframing has catalyzed better outcomes for children and families in Tennessee.

Report

Strategies for Effectively Communicating about Toxic Stress

This Message Brief is designed to help advocates, pediatricians, direct service providers, and other frontline professionals to more effectively communicate the science of development with members...

Report

Adding Prenatal Development to the Core Story of Early Development

This brief works alongside Moving Early Childhood Up the Agenda, which lays out a Core Story of Early Childhood Development in Australia. Making early childhood a priority policy issue means...

Report

Building Relationships: Framing Early Relational Health

To build public support for change, we do not need a new term, we need to tell a new story—one that changes the dominant narrative from “relationships are nice to have” to “relationships...

Report

Adding Child Mental Health to the Core Story of Early Development

This brief works alongside Moving Early Childhood Up the Agenda, which lays out a Core Story of Early Childhood Development in Australia. Making early childhood a priority policy issue means...

Report

Adding Play to the Core Story of Early Development

This brief works alongside Moving Early Childhood Up the Agenda, which lays out a Core Story of Early Childhood Development in Australia. Making early childhood a priority policy issue means...

Report

Framing Adolescent Development During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Even during these uncertain times, it’s a sure thing that adolescents—young people between childhood and adulthood—are still developing biologically, socially, and emotionally. We can also...

Report

Protected: Moving Early Childhood Up the Agenda: A Core Story of Early Childhood Development in Australia

Over the past decade, the sector has coalesced around a Science Explanation narrative. It has been highly effective in building public understanding of how development works, but to take the next...

Announcements

Framing Adolescent Development During the COVID-19 Pandemic

As COVID-19 disrupts some of the necessary conditions for healthy adolescent development, many working in sectors of youth development, education, and adolescent health have launched efforts to...

Report

Moving Early Childhood Up the Agenda: A Core Story of Early Childhood Development in Australia

In this brief, we outline a new Core Story of Early Childhood Development built around the concepts of “Health and Fairness.” It is based on an in-depth exploration of a series of frames...

Report

The Core Story of Early Childhood Development in Australia: Supplement on Research Methods and Evidence

This document is a research supplement for Moving Early Childhood Up the Agenda, which lays out a Core Story of Early Childhood Development in Australia, and for three additional briefs on...

Announcements

Reframing Developmental Relationships

Developmental relationships -- interactions with friends, family, teachers, coaches, and more—allow young people to learn new skills and forge their identities. In partnership with the Search...