The role of social capital and community belongingness for exercise adherence: An exploratory study of the CrossFit gym model

This is the first study to measure the ‘sense of community’ reportedly offered by the CrossFit gym model. A cross-sectional study adapted Social Capital and General Belongingness scales to compare perceptions of a CrossFit gym and a traditional gym. CrossFit gym members reported significantly higher levels of social capital (both bridging and bonding) and community belongingness compared with traditional gym members. However, regression analysis showed neither social capital, community belongingness, nor gym type was an independent predictor of gym attendance. Exercise and health professionals may benefit from evaluating further the ‘sense of community’ offered by gym-based exercise programmes

Conceptualising the primary to secondary school transition within the theoretical framework of ecosocial theory

The transition between primary and secondary school is an important event in the lives of young people with the potential to impact mental health outcomes in the short and long term. This paper argues that ecosocial theory, a theory of epidemiology, offers important insights into the relationship between students, schools and mental health across the transition process. It draws on theoretical perspectives on psychosocial and flexible resource distribution, contending that low socio-economic status is associated with lower resources, resulting in greater risk of a problematic transition experience. It also highlights that the school environment may affect how stressful the transition process is for young people, influencing levels of school connectedness and sense of belonging post-transition. The paper concludes by considering how critical realism, in its ontological realism and epistemological relativism, offers an important research paradigm from which to research school transition and mental health

A systematic review of school transition interventions to improve mental health and wellbeing outcomes in children and young people

Normative transitions between educational settings can be important life events for young people, having the potential to influence mental health trajectories across the life course. Interventions to target transitions have been used to support children and young people as they transition between school settings, but there is limited synthesis of their effects. Seven databases were searched to identify studies of universal interventions focused on supporting mental health and wellbeing across three main types of educational transition: preschool to elementary school; school to school (including elementary to middle; middle to high and other combinations depending on country); and high school to post-compulsory education. Effect directions for behavioural, psychological/emotional and social measures of mental health were extracted for each study and synthesized using effect direction plot methodology. Searches identified 6494 records for screening. This resulted in 34 papers being included in the review, consisting of 24 different interventions. Social outcomes appeared more amenable to intervention than behavioural outcomes, with mixed findings for psychological measures of mental health. Intervention characteristics shifted based on the age of young person involved in the transition, with greater focus on parenting and school environment during the early transitions, and more focus on social support for the transition to post-compulsory education. A broad range of interventions were identified for supporting mental health and wellbeing across the three types of educational transition with mixed impact and diverse methodologies. More research is needed to identify transferable intervention mechanisms that may hold across different contexts and settings. PROSPERO registration number: CRD42020176336

Harvesting the benefits when growing older

This picture was taken at a community garden where researchers at Cardiff Metropolitan University have been investigating the benefits of gardening activity for physical and psychological health in later life. The Growing a Healthy Older Population in Wales (GHOP) project has found that allotments and community gardens are nurturing environments not only for plants but for humans too. Over the course of a four-month prospective study, Jemma Hawkins, the research officer on the project, and her colleagues Debbie Clayton and Jenny Mercer found improvements in participants’ health and wellbeing on measures of body mass index, hand-grip strength, perceived stress levels and selfesteem that were not observed in a wait-list control group. This sample of older gardeners also kept diaries that informed follow-up interviews exploring their experiences of being a newcomer to allotment gardening. Findings indicated that, even during the first couple of years, keeping an allotment can have significant benefits. For example, participants discussed the importance of regular social interaction at the site, and the sense of achievement and satisfaction that arises from their activity. This has several parallels with the research team’s previous findings (published in the June 2013 issue of Ecopsychology) that both engaging in gardening activities and being in such a natural environment have the potential to reduce stress and enhance healthy ageing. For further information on the GHOP project go to www.cardiffmet.ac.uk/ghop

Allotment gardening and other leisure activities for stress reduction and healthy aging

This study explored the potential benefits of allotment gardening for healthy aging, focusing on the opportunities for outdoor physical activity, social support, and contact with nature that allotment gardening provides. Participants included 94 individuals aged between 50 and 88 years who were members of various indoor and outdoor activity groups. The participants completed physiological measures and psychometric scales of self-rated health, perceived stress, physical activity level, and perceived social support. A significant difference in perceived stress levels was observed between the activity groups. Allotment gardeners reported significantly less perceived stress than participants of indoor exercise classes (P < 0.05). As there were no significant differences in reported levels of social support and physical activity, explanations for the allotment gardeners' lower stress levels focus on the potential contribution of engagement with nature and psychological restoration. These findings represent a step toward understanding the benefits of allotment gardening activity as a health-promoting behavior in later life

“Doing” gardening and “being” at the allotment site: exploring the benefits of allotment gardening for stress reduction and healthy aging

The purpose of this study was to investigate the benefits to health and well-being of allotment gardening (in Wales, UK) in a community-dwelling older adult sample, with a particular emphasis on stress recovery. Semi-structured interviews were used to explore allotment gardener participants' personal beliefs and ideas of the benefits of their allotment gardening activity. The transcribed interviews were examined using thematic analysis. It was assumed that through the discussion of positive aspects of allotment gardening it would be possible to clarify specific benefits that relate to coping with stress in order to further an understanding of the mechanisms involved. Findings indicate that allotment gardeners appreciate both “doing” gardening activity as well as “being” at the allotment landscape for affording a wide range of benefits to their health and well-being. These benefits are discussed with reference to existing theory and research, including links to stress reduction

Study protocol of a mixed method pragmatic quasi-experimental trial to evaluate the day activity services targeted at older home care clients in Finland

Background: In Finland, the ‘day activity service’ is targeted at older home care clients who are unable to participate in other available activities due to poor health or functional disabilities. The aim of the day activity service is to support home care client’s ability to live at home and to enhance their wellbeing and social inclusion. This mixed method study examines the effectiveness, cost-effectiveness and process of the day activity service. Methods: The target sample size is 200 participants. The intervention group (n = 100) is composed of home care clients who begin to participate in the day activity service. The comparison group (n = 100) are home care clients who do not participate in the day activity service, and whose functioning and care needs are similar to the participants of the intervention group. The primary outcome is social inclusion (ESIS-scale). Secondary outcomes are loneliness (single item and De Jong Gierveld Loneliness Scale) and social care related quality of life (ASCOT). Baseline, three-month and six-month follow-up surveys are gathered from intervention and comparison group participants in order to compare outcomes between groups pre- and post-intervention. Costs of health and social services, based on administrative data, and the costs of the intervention are utilized in examining the cost-effectiveness of the intervention with the above-described measurements. Qualitative data are collected by interviewing the intervention participants (n = 10) and professionals working at the day activity centres and older people’s services (4 focus groups) to explore the perceived outcomes and process of the intervention to find out how and why the intervention is effective or ineffective. Discussion: The study seeks to produce a comprehensive understanding of the effectiveness, cost-effectiveness and implementation process of the day activity service. Trial registration: ISRCTN13146087, Registration date 03/04/2022

School health and wellbeing and national education system reform: a qualitative study

Abstract The education systems of the four UK nations are diverging, and the education system in Wales is undergoing major reform with substantially increased emphasis on health and wellbeing. Understanding implementation of major policy and system reforms requires an understanding of system histories and starting points. This study aimed to explore the perceived roles of schools in contemporary society, and how this role has evolved over time; aims of the reforms, with a particular focus on health and wellbeing; and perceived barriers and facilitators for implementation. Interviews were held with senior stakeholders in the Welsh education system who held a strategic role in shaping the reforms. This included senior members of government and schools with a remit in either design of the curriculum or educationalists' professional learning, Wales’s school regulatory body, and those with a multidisciplinary remit in health and education. Interviews were subjected to thematic analysis, which produced a number of themes related to each objective including ‘a changing society and increasing expectations on schools’, ‘the perceived role of schools in supporting health and wellbeing’, ‘the aims of the reform’, ‘what will success look like?’, ‘national level barriers and facilitators’, and ‘community and school level barriers and facilitators’. Findings suggest education system reform requires change at multiple levels of the education system. Consideration of each level, and the interactions between them, is necessary for achieving change

From complex social interventions to interventions in complex social systems: future directions and unresolved questions for intervention development and evaluation

Complex systems approaches to social intervention research are increasingly advocated. However, there have been few attempts to consider how models of intervention science, such as the Medical Research Council (MRC) complex interventions framework, might be re-framed through a complex systems lens. This paper identifies some key areas in which this framework might be reconceptualised, and a number of priority areas where further development is needed if alignment with a systems perspective is to be achieved. We argue that a complex systems perspective broadens the parameters of ‘relevant’ evidence and theory for intervention development, before discussing challenges in defining feasibility in dynamic terms. We argue that whole systems evaluations may be neither attainable, nor necessary; acknowledgment of complexity does not mean that evaluations must be complex, or investigate all facets of complexity. However, a systems lens may add value to evaluation design through guiding identification of key uncertainties, and informing decisions such as timings of follow-up assessments