• Children, Youth and Young Adults

    Over the past two decades, Israel has made great efforts to improve the service system for children and youth at risk, with emphases on community-based services, systematic data-based planning, and inter-ministerial and inter-agency collaboration.

    Throughout this period, MJB’s Children’s Team has influenced the national agenda through studies of the needs of children and youth at risk, and the service system designed to address them.

    In 2021, the Children's Team will continue to assist policymakers and service developers in addressing the increased risk situations for children resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic by undertaking international reviews describing what is being done in other countries, providing consultation to government ministries, participating in round table discussions and providing ad-hoc rapid response services such as surveys and focus groups.

    2024 Research Themes

    • Preschool Children
    • Children at Risk in the Education System
    • Interventions for Families in Crisis
    • Child Welfare Services for Children & Youth at Risk
    • Support of Target Groups of Children and Youth
    • Young Adults in Israel
    Children, Youth and Young Adults Image

    2024 Research Themes

    Preschool Children
    Children at Risk in the Education System
    Interventions for Families in Crisis
    Child Welfare Services for Children & Youth at Risk
    Support of Target Groups of Children and Youth
    Young Adults in Israel

    Research Staff

    Brachi Ben Simon

    Researcher

    Dr. Rachel Szabo-Lael

    Chief of Operations & Senior Research Scholar

    Dr. Viacheslav Konstantinov

    Research scholar

    Dr. Yoa Sorek

    Senior Research Scholar and Team Leader

    Fida Nijim-Ektelat

    Research Associate

    Helen Mishael

    Coordinator

    Ortal Toporek Barr

    Research Analyst

    Ruth Baruj-Kovarsky

    Research Scholar

    Recent Publications

    Logic Models for the “Chanoch LaNa’ar” Program
    Yael Bachar, Dr. Tal Arazi
    2024

    The Social Inclusion Team at the Myers-JDC-Brookdale Institute is currently evaluating the Chanoch LaNa'ar program, and the Institute’s Outcomes Team was asked to design logic models for the program. The logic model is a key tool in outcomes thinking, which seeks to trace change theory and help in developing measurement systems, analyzing data and in learning about the program. The model gives a graphic presentation of the program’s main components – characteristics, needs, inputs, outputs, and outcomes – and illustrates their connections visually. It is a widely used tool for planning, conceptualization, and tracking changes.
    Outcome-Based Planning to Optimize the Service Network for Children and Youth at Risk in Local Authorities
    Maayan Sarver, Dr. Tal Arazi, Dr. Yuri Teper, Mimi Ackerman
    2024

    This manual is designed to help professionals in local authorities to refine their planning, measurement and lesson-learning processes from a broad, cross-municipal perspective and as part of the program’s routine operations. The manual is based on a planning process informed by the logic model and by the principles of outcome-based thinking, articulating the aim of implementing the principles of outcome-based thinking as an organizing framework for 360°.
    Supporting Families in Separation and Divorce: An International Review of Legislation, Policy, and Best Practices
    Dr. Yoa Sorek, Zohar Or Sharvit, Dr. Tal Lento
    2024

    The overarching objective of this review is to provide information collected in various Western countries in order to optimize the development of a policy for treating and helping Israeli families engaged in separation and divorce processes. The topics of this review include legislation and treatment policies related to these families, as well as families with parental conflicts more generally; the types of interventions provided to these families; tailored and accessible interventions for families from diverse demographic groups; case studies of integrative service models for these families; barriers and challenges and best practices in serving them.
    The “What’s Up?” Survey of Adolescents in Residential Care During The Israel-Hamas War
    Ben Alfasi, Dr. Anna Reznikovski-Kuras, Dr. Tal Arazi
    2024

    On October 7, 2023, the Hamas terrorist organization launched a surprise attack on the communities bordering on the Gaza Strip that led Israel to declare war on Hamas. Immediately after the outbreak of the war, the Out-of-Home Care, Family, Children, Youth and Special Placement Division of the Ministry of Welfare and Social Affairs began assessing the needs of the residential facilities under its responsibility. A month after the outbreak of the war, the Ministry decided to examine the status of the adolescents in these facilities with the residents themselves, to assess their unique needs in light of the terror attack and ongoing hostilities, as well as to convey a message of caring and partnership by professionals and administrators in the residential facilities and the Ministry. Therefore, the Ministry commissioned the Myers-Joint-Brookdale Institute to conduct a survey of all adolescents in residential care facilities supervised by the Ministry.
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