Knowra Protective factor Protective factor A condition, characteristic, or resource that lowers the likelihood of a harmful outcome or reduces its impact. Protective factors can operate at individual, relationship, community, or societal levels.
Risk factor : A condition or characteristic associated with an increased likelihood of a harmful outcome. Protection can counterbalance risk, though it does not necessarily erase its effects.
Positive youth development : An approach that promotes young people's strengths, competencies, and supportive relationships. Programs use this approach to build assets that protect against later difficulties.
Epidemiology : The study of the distribution and causes of health-related states and events in populations. Protective factors are often identified by comparing outcome patterns across populations.
Promotive factor : A condition associated with positive outcomes across levels of risk. Unlike a protective factor in the strict sense, it benefits outcomes regardless of adversity.
Resilience : The capacity to adapt or recover in the face of adversity. Protective resources can help explain how people maintain or regain well-being under stress.
Adverse childhood experiences : Potentially traumatic events occurring before age 18, including abuse, neglect, and household dysfunction. Research on these experiences examines which conditions reduce their long-term effects.
Causal inference : Methods for estimating whether an exposure or intervention causes an outcome. An observed association does not establish that a proposed protective factor caused lower harm.
Risk reduction : A decrease in the probability or severity of an adverse outcome. It names the result, whereas a protective factor is a condition that may produce it.
Stress-buffering model : A model in which social support weakens the effects of stress on health or well-being. It describes one way a protective factor can reduce harm without removing the stressor.
Social support : Emotional, informational, or practical assistance available through relationships and social networks. Supportive relationships are a frequently studied protection against stress-related harm.
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