Lived Experiences Of Young People Research Articles

Empowering Young People in Shaping an Intersectional Future for Public Spaces

Public spaces, such as squares, urban parks, and communal areas are arenas that reflect societal values and power structures, influencing who has access and how they engage with these spaces. This viewpoint explores the application of intersectionality—considering factors like gender, race, and socioeconomic status—in understanding how diverse identities shape the lived experience of young people in public spaces. More specifically, it focuses on girls, and it reflects on the intersectional challenges girls face in four different contexts to include Belgium, South Africa, Iran, and Sweden. The analysis reveals the complexities of safety, accessibility, and inclusion girls face across all cases. This viewpoint underscores the value in using an intersectional lens in designing inclusive public spaces and highlights the pivotal role of young people as advocates for change.

Life Experiences of Young People Who Are Neither In Education or Employment: A Qualitative Research

Problem The fact that the young population, which represents the most active and productive segment of the country, is far from working life directly affects the future of the country. Purpose: To deeply examine the life experiences of young adults who are not included in education and working life, to reveal the difficulties they face and what needs to be done to participate in education and working life. Method: This study is a qualitative research and in-depth interviews were conducted with the participants and thematic content analysis was used in its analysis. 41 volunteer young adults determined by the snowball sampling method participated in the research. Findings: Our research findings revealed that the young adults who participated in the research could not continue their education, had a lack of experience, and felt bad and incomplete. Among the findings, it was highlighted that young adults attended vocational courses and looked for jobs in order to ensure their personal development. Conclusion It has been revealed that current programs aimed at the participation of young adults in education and working life should be improved and that the financial support that young people need in this process should be provided by state institutions. Originality/Value: This study makes an extremely important contribution to the literature in terms of making the life experiences of young people who are not included in education and working life visible. The results of this research have proven that programs for young people need to be developed. Keywords: Education, Employment, Unemployment, Young Adults

Snakes and Ladders: The experience of being referred to and seen by Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services

BackgroundReferral processes in Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) have been reported as stressful and inadequate by young people and parents/carers, who struggle during waiting periods for the referral outcome decision. The Covid19 pandemic was an unprecedented time of distress for young people, parents/carers, and healthcare staff, with increased mental health challenges and stretched staff having to adapt modes of care, thus exacerbating difficulties for CAMHS. AimThis qualitative study aimed to capture the unique lived experiences of young people, parents/carers, and CAMHS staff during the referral process in the peak of the Covid19 pandemic. MethodsAs part of the STADIA trial, between 2020 and 2022, 109 semi-structured interviews across 8 NHS sites were conducted with young people (aged 16–17), parents/carers, and NHS staff including clinicians, commissioners, managers, and researchers embedded in clinical services. Interviews were analysed using thematic analysis. ResultsThree themes were elicited to express young people, staff, and parents/carer experiences of the referral process, CAMHS, and the impact of Covid19: 1) referral as a starting point; 2) changes to methods of appointment delivery and their effect on CAMHS experience; and 3) experiences and evaluation of services. ConclusionAlthough CAMHS was seen as the pinnacle of mental health support, there was dissatisfaction with waiting times, limited communication, unclear referral processes, and limited clinical capacity and resources for young people, parent/carers, and staff. Covid19 forced CAMHS into adapting to a hybrid model of care, increasing accessibility for young people, parents/carers and staff and highlighting areas for improvement. Secure and consistent support and increases in staff resources are essential to address challenges with CAMHS delivery and improve the experiences of young people, parent/carers, and staff.

Early intervention for children and young people with neurodevelopmental conditions and intellectual disability: “The Getting Help” offer for Northwest England

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to outline what early support should be offered to children and young people with neurodevelopmental conditions including those who are autistic or have intellectual disability. A review of all child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) services in the Northwest completed by NHS England and Improvement (Doyle and Ryan, 2021) found that there was no clear Tier 2 offer (for mild to moderate mental health issues) for autistic children and young people or for those with intellectual disability. Following this review, a project group that had developed a model for mental health services for autistic children and young people and for those with intellectual disability (Wee et al., 2021) was tasked with articulating the “Getting Help” offer for children and young people with neurodevelopmental conditions, including intellectual disability. Design/methodology/approach A working group was created consisting of professionals from mental health, education and local authority and lived experience representatives of coproduction partners. A brief review of the background literature was also conducted. Six meetings were held to create a framework for the “Getting Help” offer and to discuss what the offer should be based on professional expertise and lived experience. Findings Recommendations for the Getting Help multi-agency offer included pre- and post-assessment support as part of a single attention deficit hyperactivity disorder/autism/neurodevelopmental pathway, community support for children with intellectual disability, access to adapted mental health support and the need for early recognition and support for avoidant and restrictive food intake disorder. Key themes from working group discussions included the reduction in the quality of services experienced by children and families due to silo working, which increased the risk of falling between multi-agency services and led to early signs of neurodevelopmental needs, or mental health issues being missed. Another theme was aiming for equity of access and outcomes. Originality/value This work is a response to a coproduced review of CAMHS in the Northwest and incorporates the lived experience of young people and families. It also adopts a holistic multi-agency neurodevelopmental approach rather than focusing on a single diagnosis or service.

TADBIRKORLIK MEHNAT JAMOASI FAOLIYATINI TASHKIL ETISH VA BOSHQARISH FALSAFASI

the article reveals the unique aspects of youth entrepreneurship, its aspects related to the economic and legal knowledge and life experiences of young people.

‘Then I Met This Lovely Police Woman’ Young People's Experiences of Engagement with the Criminal Justice System

AbstractYoung people's voices detailing how they experienced engagement with the criminal justice system following child sexual abuse, what was helpful or unhelpful and how services can be improved to minimise secondary victimisation and maximise the potential for healing are largely absent from the research literature. This paper draws on semi‐structured interviews with a culturally diverse sample (n = 47) of young people aged 14 to 25 across Ireland and Canada about their experiences of disclosure and engagement with systems. Data were collected pertaining to experiences engaging with law enforcement personnel using thematic analysis with a trauma‐informed lens. The research identified three key themes: the importance of feeling safe through kindness, transparency and being believed; the importance of having a say; and the importance of timely court processes. The study builds on the small body of qualitative research illustrating young people's lived experiences of engaging with the criminal justice system and provides empirical support for promoting a trauma‐informed approach in how police engage with young people. Guidance is offered for police professionals on how to engage with adolescents following sexual abuse.

“It Started With a Nude”: Gangs & Technology-Facilitated Sexual Violence

This unique qualitative study updates current literature on gangs and sexual violence by incorporating digital practices. This study applies the framework of technology-facilitated sexual violence (TFSV) which combines cyberstalking, coerced sexting, online sexual harassment, and sextortion, to the lived experience of young people in and around gangs in London. Findings are generated from a study that took place January–July 2015, which involved 240 young people taking part in 12 focus groups. Data is triangulated with content analysis of social media sites belonging to local gangs. Exploration of patriarchal and gendered practices that normalize sexual violence in gangs on and offline will be discussed. The link between gangs, TFSV, and criminal exploitation will also be established.

Trajectory, Perceived Causes and Efforts in Diabetes Self-management: A Qualitative Study Among Young People With Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus and Caregivers

Introduction: Previous studies have suggested that young individuals with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) face challenges in achieving optimal diabetes self-management, leading to difficulties in attaining the recommended glycaemic target. The reasons behind these suboptimal practices remain unclear due to the limited number of studies conducted in Malaysia that focused on diabetes self-management among young people. This qualitative study aimed to understand the lived experience of young people with T2DM on self-management in Malaysia. Methods: Young people at the age of 10 to 24 years, who had been diagnosed with T2DM and the caregivers who managing young people with T2DM were interviewed. Data were thematically analysed with the aid of QSR NVivo version 12. Results: Sixteen young informants and eleven caregivers participated in this study. Three major themes conceptualised the lived experience of diabetes self-management: (1) the trajectory to T2DM diagnosis; (2) perceived causes of T2DM; (3) the efforts in diabetes self-management. The route of diagnosis and experiential knowledge about T2DM might determine their efforts in the self-management among the young people. Healthy eating, medication taking and physical activity were perceived as important tasks in diabetes self-management. The involvement of the caregivers in diabetes self-management evolved over time. Conclusion: The study highlighted the experience of young people and caregivers since the beginning of the diagnosis and their strategies in diabetes self-management. More understanding of the lived experiences of patients and caregivers in disease management within the socio-ecological context could help to improve health-care services and intervention for this population.

“A game show at the end of the world” The currency of youth in UN climate summitry

ABSTRACT What do the lived experiences of young people tell us about the currency of youth in United Nations (UN) climate summitry, at a time in which youth is endowed with symbolic capital? Initially, self-representing as ‘youth’ in and around UN climate summits appears to open doors for young people, particularly since the creation of additional youth engagement mechanisms that followed the 2019 Fridays for Future protests. Based on four years of fieldwork, this article shows that youth can be both a limited and limiting currency in global climate politics. Indeed, the currency is finite, leading different youth groups to compete for speaking slots and visibility. Further, an increasing amount of young people have come to realize that youth is a limiting currency to advocate for environmental justice claims. These findings, which would not have been possible without an ethnographic and collaborative approach, contribute to existing calls challenging the ways that theory, research, and practice are oriented toward young people in climate politics.

“They had clothes on their back and they had food in their stomach, but they didn't have me”: The contribution of parental mental health problems, substance use, and domestic violence and abuse on young people and parents

BackgroundThe parental risk factors of mental health problems, substance use, and domestic violence and abuse each individually negatively impacts children's health and developmental outcomes. Few studies have considered the lived experience and support needs of parents and children in the real-world situation where these common risks cluster. ObjectiveThis study explores parents' and young people's lived experiences of the clustering of parental mental health problems, parental substance use, and domestic violence and abuse. MethodsSemi-structured interviews were conducted with 18 mothers, 6 fathers, and 7 young people with experiences of these parental risk factors. Transcribed interviews were analysed using reflexive thematic analysis. ResultsFour themes were developed, 1) cumulative adversity, 2) the impact of syndemic risk, 3) families navigating risk, and 4) family support. Parents and young people described family situations of stress wherein they experienced cumulative impact of multiple parental risk factors. Parents sought to navigate stressors and parent in positive ways under challenging conditions, often impeded by their own childhood trauma and diminished confidence. Parents and young people spoke of the need for, and benefits of having, support; both as a family and as individuals, to successfully address this trio of parental risks and the related impact. ConclusionsThis study highlights the high level of stress families experience and the efforts they go to mitigate risk. Services and interventions need to reflect the complexity of multiple needs and consider both the whole family and individuals when providing support.

The aftermath of gendered violence: Kinship and affect in post-genocide Rwanda

Thousands of women and girls experienced sexual violence during the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda, and many became pregnant as a result of rape. Based on two years of ethnographic research in Rwanda, this article discusses how kinship is (re-)established in the aftermath of sexual violence by focusing on the lived experiences of young people conceived in genocidal rape. The article explores what forms of relationships become possible, impossible, enabled or dismissed, in the aftermath of a period of extreme violence. Through detailing the delicate establishment of affective ties, I hope to show the subtle work that goes into containing genocide memories in the everyday. The article suggests that young people engage in careful and ‘attuned’ kinship practices in an environment that changes throughout their life course. In exploring how young people carefully navigate the mending, protecting, and accepting of ‘family’, the article emphasizes the possibilities and limitations of kinship in the aftermath of collective violence.

‘After a long period of being in hibernation – These little green shoots were growing’. Lived experiences of effective support for autistic young people who have experienced extended school nonattendance

AbstractExtended school nonattendance has been identified across previous literature as problematic for autistic pupils and prevalence rates are considerably higher for this cohort than their neurotypical peers. The neurodiversity paradigm calls for a shift towards qualitative and participatory research methodologies, which was identified as a suitable approach for the current study to understand autistic young people's lived experiences. This participatory inquiry adopted a flexible and reflective approach with two autistic adolescents who had extended school nonattendance and aimed to explore how Kas and Z experienced this and described effective support to meet their needs. Adolescents' perspectives were supported by three parental viewpoints. The participatory design allowed participants to identify key themes of effective support: a nuanced relationship with time; internal processes of control and motivation; relationships and safe environments; perspectives around their diagnosis of autism. A thematic map was developed to highlight the interaction between adolescents' perspectives and parental viewpoints and the superordinate, researcher‐identified theme of Understanding and Acceptance of Individual Lived Experience of Autism. The methodology and themes suggest considerations for professionals to develop practice to support autistic pupils who experience extended school nonattendance. Implications for future research are discussed.

Using young peoples’ lived experiences to explore definitional characteristics for cyberbullying

ABSTRACT Applying established definitions of bullying to the more recent phenomenon of cyberbullying often results in an ill-fitting definition which is contested by academics. There are particular difficulties when applying the well-documented facets of intentional harm, repetition and power imbalance to the context of online bullying. A contested definition presents challenges when comparing studies and for building theory. This qualitative study investigates defining characteristics of cyberbullying, drawing on the lived experiences of young people (aged 11–17 years) situated in the north west of England. Young people’s experiences point to a more nuanced experience with different characteristics incorporating: the intention to harm or humiliate; that the victim cannot escape from the activities perpetrated against them; an attempt to transfer power from the victim; and the perpetrator hides behind the screen.

Young people's lived experiences shape Scottish suicide prevention strategy

Young people's lived experiences shape Scottish suicide prevention strategy

Mirror meetings as a tool to enhance professionals' awareness of the lived experiences of young people with inflammatory bowel disease.

During mirror meetings, professionals were confronted with the experiences of young people (YP) with inflammatory bowel disease to encourage them to improve their transitional care arrangements. The mirror meetings were held under guidance of an independent moderator. YP conversed about their transition experiences, while health care providers listened without interfering. Meetings were audio-recorded and summarized. Qualitative thematic analysis was conducted. Thirty-two YP participated in six mirror meetings with 26 professionals from paediatric and adult care. Professionals received concrete suggestions for improving their transitional care arrangements. These were about holistic care, tailored to individual needs and preferences, attention for mental health and the role of parents and peers. Advice given by YP matched transitional care guidelines' recommendations. Mirror meetings are a powerful tool to enhance professionals' awareness of YP's needs.

‘These Made-Up Things Mean Nothing to Me’: Exploring the Intersection of Autism and Bisexuality in the Lives of Young People

This article explores the negotiation of autism and bisexuality in the lives of young people (16–25). Identity negotiation in this regard refers to the exploration of how the participants experienced the intersection of bisexuality and autism from a personal and a social perspective. To do this the article uses data collected from interviews and diaries to examine how the participants understood the intersection, how others perceived their identities and how the participants challenged constructions of sexuality. As a result, the article works to move beyond deficit focused research which aims to understand what is missing from an autistic persons’ make-up which results in LGBT + identities. In doing so, it is suggested that a more worthwhile focus is upon socially constructed categories such as sexuality which are more open to be challenged. Bisexuality is uniquely positioned as it challenges a number of preconceptions about sexuality and gender. When combined with being autistic, the lived experiences of young people demonstrate a challenge to sexuality based upon rejecting constructions which are seen as being fragile. Such imperfect labels, such as bisexuality, may be important in furthering our understanding of the intersection.

Factors That Influence Young Viewers in Choosing Famous Food on Social Media: Social Media Food Content

The objective of this study was to determine the factors influencing young viewers in choosing famous dishes on social networks. The objective of the study was to collect data on the life experiences of young people in the country. Through a series of analysis; frequency and descriptive analysis, useful information was obtained. Social media has had an impact on increasing the popularity of food. The type of social media and the type of post are also important factors in increasing the popularity of a food. The results of this study therefore suggest that young viewers agree that YouTube has the greatest influence on the type of social media used to increase the popularity of a dish, while viewing the dish selected by members is the same as the type of post that affects the popularity of a dish. Besides improving documentation, the results certainly have practical implications.

'No one else understands', 'I wouldn't want to pity myself over something that's not really my problem': siblings' experiences of their adolescent brothers and sisters' inpatient treatment for mental health difficulties.

Family life is disrupted when a child experiences mental health difficulties. This can have long-standing effects on sibling relationships. This study explores the lived experiences of young people who have an adolescent sibling hospitalised for treatment of a mental health difficulty. Semi-structured interviews of 45-60 min were conducted to explore the experiences of 10 siblings (6 sisters/4 brothers aged 13-22) of nine patients (5 sisters/4 brothers aged 15-17) receiving treatment for a mental health difficulty in a child and adolescent inpatient unit (IPU). Interpretative phenomenological analysis was used to analyse the data. Two superordinate themes were identified: 'Who am I if I'm not supporting them?' and 'On the fringes: actively involved but from the outside'. The interplay of these two super-ordinate themes was found to influence the five sub-ordinate themes: 'Confusion and disbelief', 'Don't worry about me, focus on them.', 'Powerless when I need to be powerful.', 'Helping or hindering- whatis this place??' and 'Knowledge is power.' Siblings described experiencing conflicting and confusing emotions which may impact their attendance in IPU and engagement in siblings' treatment. Siblings of adolescents in inpatient treatment for mental health difficulties may be at increased risk of experiencing psychological distress. The mental well-being of siblings must be borne in mind by child and adolescent inpatient services supporting families in crisis.

A qualitative study of young people's lived experiences of suicide and self-harm: intentionality, rationality and authenticity.

Suicide is a leading cause of death amongst young people and a major public health concern. Although increasing research has identified contributory and protective factors affecting youth suicide, less is known about how young people make sense of suicidal distress themselves. Using semi-structured interview methods and reflexive thematic analysis, this study explores how 24 young people aged 16-24 in Scotland, UK made sense of their lived experiences of suicidal thoughts and feelings, self-harm, and suicide attempts. Intentionality, rationality, and authenticity formed our central themes. Suicidal thoughts were categorised by participants dependent on their intention to act on them; a distinction often used to downplay the significance of early suicidal thoughts. Escalating suicidal feelings were then described as almost rational responses to adversities; whereas suicide attempts appeared to be described as more impulsive. These narratives seemed to be somewhat shaped by dismissive attitudes participants experienced in response to their suicidal distress, both from professionals and within their close networks. This impacted how participants articulated distress and asked for support. Suicidal thoughts that participants articulated as lacking the intention to act could represent key opportunities for early clinical intervention to prevent suicide. In contrast, stigma, difficulties communicating suicidal distress and dismissive attitudes could serve as barriers to seeking help, and, therefore, additional efforts should be made to ensure young people feel comfortable seeking help.

Languages and technologies in education at school and outside of school: Perspectives from young people in low-resource countries in Africa and Asia

Disadvantaged young people in low-resource countries are less likely to complete their education or to progress to higher levels, which means that their upward mobility can be severely constrained. Versatile technologies such as smartphones, when combined with an ability to use the English language, can facilitate access to learning resources, thereby helping to support young people's education where the school facilities and local teaching resources are often insufficient and may reinforce existing inequalities. However, technology access and usage vary, and linguistic or other barriers to effective engagement are multifaceted. To gain a deeper understanding of the role of languages and technologies, our research project collected first-hand accounts of the educational experiences of marginalized young people aged 13–15, their parents and teachers in harder-to-reach urban and rural settings, in four low-income countries in Africa and Asia. The research investigated perspectives on the English language and use of technology in education in school and outside of school. Our findings provide original insights into local cultures of technology use and English language use in the context of young people's lived experiences. The paper covers young people's use of English and attitudes toward English alongside other languages in their local settings, and how they are learning with mobile digital devices at school, at home, outdoors, and in the homes of relatives, friends and neighbors. Relationships between languages and technologies are discussed, as well as the sustainability of English- and technology-mediated education in the countries in question, which will have broader applicability in other low-resource settings.