Youth Volunteering: New Norms for Policy and Practice

Young people engaging in volunteering are encountering some of the greatest, unanticipated challenges facing society in decades including the impact of Covid-19, the rise in extreme poverty and an increase in the number of migrants and displaced persons globally. Youth volunteering is understood as embracing a wide range of civic and societal objectives. It acts to encourage young people to become active citizens and agents of positive change for communities. It has a role in providing developmental opportunities to young people including pathways to education, training and work. While some characterisations of volunteering highlight benefits it accords at the individual level, increasingly, policy responses are focusing on the ‘other-oriented’ elements that contribute to an inclusive, committed and tolerant society. This paper examines the potential role of volunteering in fostering a culture of citizenship, democracy and social cohesion among youth, in particular, an emerging focus on empathy and global consciousness as key elements of policy and practice

The feasibility of a Comprehensive Resilience-building psychosocial Intervention (CREST) for people with dementia in the community: protocol for a non-randomised feasibility study

Background: A dementia diagnosis can prevent people from participating in society, leading to a further decline in cognitive, social and physical health. However, it may be possible for people with dementia to continue to live meaningful lives and continue to participate actively in society if a supportive psychosocial environment exists. Resilience theory, which focuses on strengthening personal attributes and external assets in the face of serious challenges, may provide a scaffold on which an inclusive multifaceted psychosocial supportive environment can be built. This protocol paper describes a study to determine the feasibility of conducting a multifaceted complex resilience building psychosocial intervention for people with dementia and their caregivers living in the community. Methods: This is a non-randomised feasibility study. Ten participants with dementia and their primary caregivers living in the community will be recruited and receive the CREST intervention. The intervention provides (a) a 7-week cognitive stimulation programme followed by an 8-week physical exercise programme for people with dementia and (b) a 6-week educational programme for caregivers. Members of the wider community will be invited to a dementia awareness programme and GP practices to a dementia training workshop. Trained professionals will deliver all intervention components. Outcomes will assess the feasibility and acceptability of all study processes. The feasibility and acceptability of a range of outcomes to be collected in a future definitive trial, including economic measurements, will also be explored. Finally, social marketing will be used to map a route toward stigma change in dementia for use in a subsequent trial. Quantitative feasibility outcome assessments will be completed at baseline and after completion of the 15-week intervention while qualitative data will be collected at recruitment, baseline, during and post-intervention delivery. Conclusion: This feasibility study will provide evidence regarding the feasibility and acceptability of a comprehensive multifaceted psychosocial intervention programme for people with dementia and their caregivers (CREST). The results will be used to inform the development and implementation of a subsequent RCT, should the findings support feasibility

Recruiting men from across the socioeconomic spectrum via GP registers and community outreach to a weight management feasibility randomised controlled trial

Background Men, particularly those living in disadvantaged areas, are less likely to participate in weight management programmes than women despite similar levels of excess weight. Little is known about how best to recruit men to weight management interventions. This paper describes patient and public involvement in pre-trial decisions relevant to recruitment and aims to report on recruitment to the subsequent men-only weight management feasibility trial, including the: i) acceptability and feasibility of recruitment; and ii) baseline sample characteristics by recruitment strategy. Methods Men with BMI ≥30 kg/m2 and/or waist circumference ≥ 40 in. were recruited to the feasibility trial via two strategies; community outreach (venue information stands and word of mouth) and GP letters, targeting disadvantaged areas. Recruitment activities (e.g. letters sent, researcher venue hours) were recorded systematically, and baseline characteristics questionnaire data collated. Qualitative interviews (n = 50) were conducted three months post-recruitment. Analyses and reporting followed a complementary mixed methods approach. Results 105 men were recruited within four months (community n = 60, GP letter n = 45). Community outreach took 2.3 recruiter hours per participant and GP letters had an opt-in rate of 10.2% (n = 90/879). More men were interested than could be accommodated. Most participants (60%) lived in more disadvantaged areas. Compared to community outreach, men recruited via GP letters were older (mean = 57 vs 48 years); more likely to report an obesity-related co-morbidity (87% vs 44%); and less educated (no formal qualifications, 32% vs 10%, degree educated 11% vs 41%). Recruitment strategies were acceptable, a sensitive approach and trusting relationships with recruiters valued, and the ‘catchy’ study name drew attention. Conclusions Targeted community outreach and GP letters were acceptable strategies that successfully recruited participants to a men-only weight management feasibility trial. Both strategies engaged men from disadvantaged areas, a typically underserved population. Using two recruitment strategies produced samples with different health risk profiles, which could add value to research where either primary or secondary prevention is of interest. Further work is required to examine how these strategies could be implemented and sustained in practice

Justifying children and young people’s involvement in social research: Assessing harm and benefit

At a time when children and young people s involvement in research is increasingly the norm, this article reflects on the importance of a well-reasoned and transparent justification for their inclusion or exclusion. It explores the dilemma of a researcher s ethical obligation to protect children and young people from harm and at the same time respect their autonomy as social actors and independent rights holders to participate in research of relevance to their lives. A researcher s ethical obligation to conduct a rigorous but balanced assessment of harm and benefit is reiterated. The article takes the debate beyond a call for assessing harm and benefit to providing a strategy for conducting such an assessment at the point of research design. Reflecting on two research projects the authors were involved in, three critical considerations are identified. These are: the purpose and the theoretical context of the research; the preferences of the children and young people and their parents; and the available time and resources. The article draws on the research examples to illustrate the assessment process in practice.peer-reviewe

Voice and meaning: the wisdom of family support veterans

Unable to archive publisher's version: http://www.sherpa.ac.uk/romeo/issn/1356-7500/Although a widely accepted term in child welfare discourses, thereremains a vagueness as to what Family Support as a named orientationin children and family services actually entails.This lack of clarityis, at times, used to detract from its usefulness within the policy andpractice arena. Using the accumulated wisdom of a select group ofaccomplished managers, academics and policy makers in social workand social care, this paper retrospectively reviews the evolution ofFamily Support within the Irish context and distils the core characteristicsof Family Support practice and service delivery. An unstructurednarrative inducing interview was conducted with 14 veterans ofFamily Support and child welfare. Participants who are based in theUSA, the UK and Ireland each had between 30 and 60 years experienceworking in this field. Salient factors were identified by participantsas having contributed to the growth of Family Support. Specificand distinct characteristics of Family Support practice and serviceswere also categorized by these veterans, providing voice and meaningto Family Support as a specific approach. This paper addresses thedebate on Family Support with its place as an accepted and valuedorientation within the child welfare arena acknowledged.peer-reviewe

Exploring Good Practice in Child and Family Services: Reflections and Considerations

The prospect of furthering good practice in child and family services is something that is in everybody¿s interest, service users, practitioners, policy makers, and academics alike. However, it is a task fraught with difficulty due in part to the wide range and diversity of child care practice as well as a lack of fora for dissemination. In the Republic of Ireland, child and family services have undergone rapid development since the implementation of the Child Care Act 1991 and child and family provision is now a blend of new and established approaches and models delivered in a range of settings. With the aim of supporting the development of good practice and profiling positive work taking place in child and family services, the Department of Health and Children initiated a process of identifying, describing and analysing good practice approaches in work with children and families. As part of this initiative, a framework of good practice principles, focused on management and operational levels, was devised and used as a means of relating to the experience of 26 service profiles nominated by local Health Service Executive regions. This article describes the methodology and process of the initiative, including the various methodological challenges that were faced and discusses key aspects of the learning that emerged in relation to good practice and the project¿s attempts to understand and relate to it

“It’s your turn to step into their shoes”: The role of empathy in adolescents experiencing maternal cancer

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the role of empathy in adolescents coping with maternal cancer to identify passive and active empathy forms and the role of these in adolescent coping at a challenging time. Design/methodology/approach This study was a secondary content analysis carried out on 15 adolescent interviews that were analysed to find the evidence of empathy in active and passive forms. Adolescents were between 14 and 20 years of age, their mothers were diagnosed with cancer in the previous 24 months to the interview. Findings The analysis identified more evidence of active forms of empathy than passive directed at ill mothers and their families as helpful behaviours and emotional support. Passive empathy was experienced by adolescents who did not have major changes in their daily routines because of maternal cancer. Both passive and active empathy were perceived as coping mechanisms. Maternal illness motivated adolescents’ empathy and encouraged actions to support their mothers, immediate and extended families. Originality/value Empathy is complex but can be important for adolescent development including their social skills and relationships; however, research has not evaluated the role of empathy in adolescents experiencing maternal cancer.peer-reviewe