Young people's mental health and overall wellbeing are increasingly recognised as essential for a thriving society. But let's be real, this society is not always great at putting words into action.
Like many others working in the youth field, we believe that understanding how young people perceive and practice wellbeing is key. To truly understand their perspectives and experiences, we need to go beyond just talking about the issue.
Our Wicked Wellbeing project aimed to do just that. By involving young people directly, through self-assessments, online learning, and a special wellbeing retreat, we gained valuable insights into their wellbeing literacy. This approach allowed us to not only understand how young people perceive wellbeing but also how they put this knowledge into practice.
By working together to exchange knowledge and practices among two European partners, a key goal of the Erasmus+ programme, we were able to successfully implement our explorative learning design. In this article, we'll share some of the key findings from our project.
Collaborative learning and unlocking wellbeing literacy
Our Erasmus+ partnership project employed a three-pronged methodology to gain a holistic understanding of youth wellbeing literacy. At Co-literate, we believe learning and skills are enhanced when we get together to share our knowledge and experiences in an accommodating space. So that’s what we did: brought together young people from Sweden and Denmark.
First, our participants were invited to embark on a shared learning experience in our online Wellbeing Literacy Research Lab. In the introductory modules, they completed a self-assessment to gauge their initial understanding and practices related to different dimensions of wellbeing literacy.
In our performance-free learning space, participants were expected to bring their perspectives, experiences, and opinions. We were not there to evaluate their skills or knowledge levels. It was all about unlocking shared understandings and practices to get a grasp of wellbeing literacy in the lives of young people.
Eight online learning modules covered various aspects of wellbeing while inviting participants to contribute their insights and creative inputs along the way: From asking conceptual guidance from an AI language model to visualising our own Wellbeing Leader personas. The learning journey was designed to be engaging, connecting, and interactive all the way.
Finally, a select group attended a five-day wellbeing retreat in Sweden hosted by our partner organisation, the Well-Being Lab, which provided an immersive, real-world application of the wellbeing concepts that our participants had been exploring together.
Measuring youth wellbeing literacy
Our self-assessment tool was designed to encourage participants to reflect on 9 different, yet intertwined, dimensions of wellbeing literacy in their own daily lives. The main goal was to invite an introspective understanding and exploration of the multifaceted concept of wellbeing literacy.
The self-assessment phase revealed both encouraging trends and areas for improvement in youth wellbeing literacy.
Notably, many participants demonstrated a strong awareness of the importance of mental health and its impact on overall wellbeing. However, gaps emerged in understanding the practical application of wellbeing concepts in daily life.
Here are some of our key findings:
The self-assessment indicates that a majority of respondents felt confident in their ability to find, understand, and use information related to emotional, social, physical, and mental wellbeing.They expressed belief in their capacity to make informed decisions based on the wellbeing information they access. This suggests a positive perception of personal wellbeing literacy among the participants.
The self-assessment results suggest that respondents generally feel confident in their ability to cultivate and maintain supportive networks. They indicated a positive perception of their skills in building relationships that provide emotional, social, and practical support.
The self-assessment revealed a notable lack of confidence among respondents in their ability to navigate the healthcare system. Respondents expressed difficulty in asserting their needs and understanding the available health services. This suggests a potential gap in healthcare literacy and a need for improved strategies.
The self-assessment highlighted a disparity between respondents' perceived understanding of wellbeing information and their ability to apply it practically. Respondents expressed uncertainty about taking concrete steps to improve their wellbeing, despite acknowledging the importance of such actions. This suggests a potential gap in wellbeing literacy, specifically in translating knowledge into action.
Youth insights on wellbeing literacy self-assessment
Participants’ general feedback on the self-assessment tool highlighted the importance of both quantitative and qualitative data in measuring wellbeing literacy. They valued the opportunity for open-ended reflection before rating statements on a Likert scale, suggesting that a mixed-methods approach does provide a more comprehensive understanding of their wellbeing experiences.
However, our thoughtful participants also noted the challenges of self-reflection. They expressed interest in discussing their responses with others, indicating the potential benefits of more group-based or interactive assessment methods. As one participant stated:
“I think the questions were generally easy to understand, but a bit abstract, which is also normal given that they are based on theory. I think that some examples could be helpful to understand if one is choosing the proper answer, but maybe we will have the chance to talk about examples in the labs?”
Of course, the idea of providing comprehensive learning modules was exactly this: To provide an explorative space for our participants to explore the concept in greater depth.
Our next article will delve into the results of these modules, uncovering how participants engaged with the material and revealed more layers and nuances of wellbeing literacy.
To be continued...
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