Youth Connectedness Project: Methodology and dissemination strategies Crespo, C., Pryor, J., Kleeb, J. & Jose, P. Roy McKenzie Centre for the Study of Families Victoria University of Wellington 6th Australia & New Zealand Health Conference Christchurch -September, 2007

WHO WE ARE Researchers from: and Funded by:

A BRIEF HISTORY Official title: “Connectedness in young New Zealanders: social connectedness, transitions, and well-being” We began in mid-2004 and are scheduled to finish the grant in mid Our chief goal is to collect annual self-report longitudinal data, via survey, on a large sample of early adolescents over three years (’06, ’07, and ’08). We also collect data, each year, from parents and school principals. We surveyed 2173 young people in ’06, and have currently recollected from 88% (n=1914) of young people in ’07 (ongoing).

BUILDING THE YOUTH SURVEY Survey construction was founded on a grounded approach of engaging with the following people: -Youth Advisory Boards (YABs) -Youth focus groups & interviews -Interviews with teachers, parents, youth workers. -Stakeholder Advisory Boards (Govt. & youth relevant NGOs) In the first instance we asked YABs to define ‘connectedness’ and ‘doing well’ and to give examples. This information was probed and built upon. We also conducted both NZ-specific and international literature reviews.

THE PROCESS YAB 1 YAB 2 YAB 3 YAB 4 pretests Literature Review Youth focus groups Interviews with youth, parents, teachers, youth workers. Stakeholder meeting 1st draft survey Pilot 1 survey (4 schools) Pilot 2 survey (5 schools, 4 community groups) Year 1 survey (78 schools)

KEY DOMAINS IDENTIFIED Connectedness to/between: Mental/Physical Health Family/Whanau Schools/Kura Friends/Peers Communities Technology Spirituality Culture Identity Happiness/Confidence Impacts on Wellbeing: Education Self Worth Also measured stress, coping and personality factors. Core assumption is that connectedness impacts on wellbeing, but also strong likelihood the pattern is bi-directional/reinforcing.

YOUTH ADVISORS AT WORK: YAB 4

BY YAB 4 WE WERE YCP WHANAU!

BIG MIHI/RESPECT TO YAB When our time together came to an end both sides felt sad. You are the experts, you confidently articulated youth reality. You have a voice that needs to be listened to. The more we built our relationships = the greater the quality of information shared between us. We gave you certificates and letters of support and hope these serve you well as you move into the future. In addition, we gave tangible recognition to the time and commitment of YABs, Youth Focus Groups and our survey participants.

SURVEY AGE SAMPLING (2006)(2007)(2008) Age Group Corresponds to Year 6, 8 and 10 students in Note: pre-tests were extremely important to make sure the generic Year 1 survey was equally understandable to all. Distib. ‘ % 32.7% 30.9%

IN ‘06 THE SURVEY WAS FILLED OUT ON LAPTOPS In ‘07 it was completed either on laptop or via the internet. The survey took an average time of 50 minutes to complete. Research assistants were there to help young people with the survey.

PROS & CONS OF LAPTOP DELIVERY PROS Allows inclusion of more questions as skips and branches ensure participants only view questions of relevance to their life circumstances. Youth enjoy interacting with this medium. Researcher input errors and time to input data are eliminated. Eliminates concerns about differing computer operating systems and cross-school variability in web access facilities. Data collection can be conducted in a ‘free space’ that does not disrupt wider school activities. CONS We purchased 30 laptops - big initial outlay. Transporting 30 laptops is strenuous and requires appropriate vehicles. Uploading data from 30 laptops is monotonous. We have now activated web surveys, but have yet to trial them in schools.

Dissemination Strategy Main goals - Commitment to feed back the project results to participants and relevant agents in the wider community -Receive feed back and actively use it during the project’s life time

Questions asked Who? What? When? Why and How? Goals for Year 1 Dissemination of year 1 data and ground preparation for the following years Challenges for Year 1 -Balance between “open” and “closed” parts -Balance between action/information and reflection -Balance between face to face and more indirect rapport -Effective resources’ management

Dissemination “Targets”

Stakeholders; Wider community; Media Meetings with stakeholders Conferences Website improvement and update Media (consultation and action) Project Day Seminar (4 th October, Wellington)

Councils Reports to councils Including…. - data addressing community experiences and perceptions - data from participants of 12 areas in the North Island: Wellington city Porirua Lower Hutt Upper Hutt Otaki Kapiti Taranaki New Pymouth Waitara Wanganui Wairarapa Ongoing work with Wellington City Council

Schools - Reports to schools Including… - results from young people’s survey and principals’ survey - results from the overall sample and also results from each school and community - Meetings with some of the participating schools

Families - Reports/feed back to families -Contact families/parents’ associations and promote a closer contact with them - Discussion group with parents (?)

Young people Focus groups Youth presence in our Day Seminar Work with youth groups (?)

Methodology and Dissemination: What brings them together? Building meaningful relationships along the way (…from “targets” to “partners”) Encouraging a collaborative and “grounded” approach Endeavouring to do research with and for more than research on

Youth Connectedness Project: “Spiral learning” (Bateson, M. C., 2004)

Year 1: Young people’s participation ( e.g., focus groups) Year 2: Young people’s participation ( e.g., focus groups) Year 3: Young people’s participation ( e.g., focus groups)

Year 1: Survey design Year 2: Survey design Year 3: Survey design

Year 1: Data collection Year 2: Data collection Year 3: Data collection

Year 1: Data analysis Year 2: Data analysis Year 3: Data analysis

Year 1: Dissemination Year 2: Dissemination Year 3: Dissemination

Young people’s participation DisseminationData collectionData analysisSurvey Young people’s participation Survey Data collectionData analysisDissemination Data analysisData collectionSurvey Young people’s participation Year 3 Year 2 Year 1

CHALLENGES AND LEARNING POINTS We found it very important to do the ground work for our project; it was important to allocate resources to establish processes and connections within the team, and with others (schools, stakeholders, and above all - participants). It is important to encourage development of skills within the team. Contingencies of research mean that multi- tasking is sometimes needed (e.g. a research assistant might be involved in establishing a relationship with a school). It is essential to employ multiple methods of keeping track of participants (e.g. checking with schools for student destinations, mail-outs asking for address confirmation and - at the start - obtaining multiple contact addresses).

CHALLENGES AND LEARNING POINTS - 2 There is a need to find a balance between too many meetings and not enough. It is important to keep a focus on the big picture - what are we trying to achieve with this project? At the same time as being open to changes as new ideas, new opportunities and even new resources become available. A vital and continuing challenge is to combine different research paradigms and cultures in the cause of the project. This involves partnership, respect, curiosity about each other’s disciplines, a continuing focus on the big picture, and a sense of humour.

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