In 2023, several interdisciplinary projects received seed funding from the institute for Preventive Health (i4PH). Annemieke Groenenboom has interviewed researchers from four seed funding projects: what are they researching, and how did they start up their interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary research? Stay tuned to learn more about the projects and dive into the ins-and-outs of interdisciplinary collaborations (audio in Dutch).
Featured in this second episode, Lonneke van Leeuwen (UMC Utrecht) about their interdisciplinary project: Reaching for Success.
Engaging in sports improves the mental health of young people in socially vulnerable situations. However, they participate in sports less frequently than average children. The exact relationship remains unclear because researchers primarily study easily accessible youth who already engage in sports regularly. With seed funding from the institute for Preventive Health, researchers from TU/e, WUR, UU, and UMC Utrecht are exploring a more inclusive research method, paving the way for larger-scale studies.
Young people in socially vulnerable positions are disproportionately affected by socio-cultural risk factors, such as social exclusion due to a disability, discrimination, or growing up in an economically disadvantaged family. “They often participate in sports less frequently than their peers, especially when we look at club sports, possibly because they can’t afford the membership fees,” says Lonneke van Leeuwen from UMC Utrecht. “Yet, engaging in club sports can reduce feelings of loneliness and boost self-confidence. For example, through social connections made at a club, the structured routine provided by training sessions, and the experience of setting and achieving goals.”
The Research Project
“We know that sports have a positive effect on the mental well-being of young people in socially vulnerable positions, but we don’t know exactly how that works and why,” Van Leeuwen continues. “Researchers often take the easiest route by approaching young people in a good socioeconomic position through approaching schools. However, young people in socially vulnerable positions may not always have a stable home or attend school regularly. Moreover, research conducted in classrooms yields averages that tell us little about individual young people in socially vulnerable situations. The key question, therefore, is: how do we reach and retain them for research?”
Seed Money
In the project Reaching for Success, TU/e, WUR, UU, and UMC Utrecht are collaboratively exploring a realistic research method for this target group as a precursor to larger-scale studies. Seed funding from the institute for Preventive Health, part of the EWUU alliance, gives them the flexibility to do so. Daniel Tetteroo (TU/e) is focusing on technological solutions for real-life data collection, Kirsten Verkooijen (WUR) on health psychology, Gonneke Stevens (UU) on large-scale research into mental health, and Lonneke van Leeuwen (UMC Utrecht) on research methods for equal opportunities.
The Approach
The research primarily involves conversations with young people in socially vulnerable positions and with care and welfare professionals who work with them, such as youth workers. The research team collaborates closely with youth program Life Goals and youth workers from Steunpunt Utrecht. “By involving these young people and professionals in shaping the research, we increase the likelihood of a feasible approach and ensure good alignment with real life cases,” explains Van Leeuwen. “Moreover, this approach helps to build support and ownership for the implementation right from the start.”
“From discussions with professionals, two clear barriers for larger-scale research have emerged,” continues Van Leeuwen. “Firstly, young people in socially vulnerable positions have little trust in (research) institutions and appear hesitant to share personal information. This teaches us that we may better approach them through the professionals they trust, and that we may need to consider alternative methods for data collection. For instance, a telephone interview feels different from completing a questionnaire for an anonymous researcher.”
In addition, Van Leeuwen mentions ‘sustained engagement’: “To measure the impact of sports, we may need to follow participants over the long term. How much do they engage in sports? And how do they feel afterward? We cannot reach young people who move between care facilities through conventional channels such as school or a fixed address. Therefore, we need to consider location-independent solutions for data collection, for example, through (an app on) their phones. Additionally, for participants under 16, we can only collect data with consent from their guardians (informed consent). This poses a significant challenge for young people who do not live at home, so we welcome suggestions from legal experts and quality coordinators.”
Interdisciplinary Collaboration
”We already notice that the barriers are real, because we have not yet managed to interview young people ourselves,” Van Leeuwen concludes. ”We will continue with that in the coming months. We meet regularly to spar about how the different disciplines can reinforce each other. After all, in interdisciplinary research, you often do not know beforehand what you are looking for. This was already apparent when Stevens, Verkooijen and I wrote the seed money proposal. The liaison officer of the i4PH saw common ground with Tetteroo’s work and linked us together. He responded within a day with feedback that we – from our social background – could not have imagined. Exactly that cross-pollination remains the common thread in our research.”