“Adventure Girls” research promotes development through teambuilding interventions

Research has shown that outdoor adventure-based interventions promote healthy developmental patterns in pre-adolescents (Eatough, Chang, Hal, 2015; Galeotti, 2015; Whittington et. al, 2011).

Two studies that build upon this research were conducted through a partnership between JMU Occupational Therapy program students and the UREC Adventure program. The first, in 2017, was a study on the Adventure Girls program, and then a follow-up study in 2019 looked at the parents/caregivers’ perspective of their child's social competence following their involvement in the 2017 Adventure Girls program.

The Adventure Girls program was an outdoor adventure program which entailed a 1.5-hour session once a week (for eleven weeks) at JMU’s TEAM Challenge Course, which is a high and low ropes outdoor teambuilding facility. Each session of the intervention consisted of an introduction, icebreaker, main activity, and reflection. Activities were structured around teamwork, problem solving, communication, leadership and trust.

In 2019, parents/caregivers mentioned that girls who participated in the program improved skills focusing on independence, leadership, confidence, and forming new friendships. The mature social interaction strategies among pre-adolescent girls carried over to their daily, personal environments (school, home, sport teams). 

Read more the research paper here and UREC’s TEAM Challenge Course.