Facts

Contact person:
Margareta Rämgård
Financer:
  • FORTE
Responsible at MaU:
Margareta Rämgård
Project members at MaU:
Collaborators :
  • Malmö City Cultural administration and Allaktivitetshusen
  • Professor Public Health / Director Community health & Wellbeing Lisa Gibbs Melbourne University
  • Professor Harry Shier PAR for children Irland
  • Professor Bengt Arnetz Department of Family medicine Michigan state university
  • Michael Strange - MIM
Time frame:
01 December 2022 - 31 December 2026
Faculty/department:
Research subject:

About the project

More equal health presupposes integration and co-influence, but methods are shaped today mainly by adults. Research shows that migrant children living in vulnerable areas are at higher risk of mental ill health. These children are seldom allowed to participate and evaluate their own well-being. This project aims in an action research-oriented process with the children, explore, measure and evaluate well-being overtime. How do the children, their parents and peer-activity leaders describe general well-being? What key factors in the social context increase their well-being, what role does gender play? How can children design and validate a socioculturally aligned survey to measure their well-being, and how does their well-being change over time?

The project is based on a previously implemented unique Community based research (CBPR) model for equal health in three socially vulnerable areas in Malmö. Activity house (AAH) has been established earlier in schools by Malmö city where migrant children participate in need-driven after school activities that they themselves create and develop. To increase participation of the children and ensure that these environments are based on their needs, 30 children (10-12 years), parents/guardians (30) peer-activity leaders (15) and researchers create CBPR teams in the areas.

The children reflect, analyse and write about their wellbeing; identify and discuss key factors, in an iterative process with a strategic group of stakeholders. The children then develop and validate (with 100 other children from AAH) the SASIC survey inspired by the KIDSSC REEN 27. The health-promoting activities will be evaluated by the researchers for a year with children from the allactivity houses in Malmö.