Positive outcomes

The Helmsman Project draws on research from the fields of education, psychology and youth development, to design programs that are informed by evidence and deliver measureable outcomes. Our program has been part of a longitudinal randomised control trial overseen by Dr Michael Cavanagh (University of Sydney) and Distinguished Professor Herb Marsh (Institute for Positive Psychology and Education, ACU).

The research, which was awarded an Australian Research Council Linkage grant, is one of the largest and most detailed studies of its kind in the field and allows us to deliver a program that offers real value to students. It also enhances our understanding of how The Helmsman Project is performing, in terms of equipping young people with hope, self-regulation, resilience and community mindedness over the long term.

Initial results are encouraging and show that our programs have a positive effect on participants’ hope, self-efficacy, self-confidence, and various aspects of their self-concept, as well as their overall wellbeing. We are hopeful that more sophisticated analyses will evidence even more promising results and provide a more detailed picture of our programs’ impact on young people.