Thriving Teens: A whole systems approach to benefit teens’ mental wellbeing

"If so many children are struggling with the same issues and falling outside the 'normal' system, we need to examine the circumstances and structures in which they grow up—rather than focusing solely on the child." This quote from Amsterdam’s new youth vision aligns with a movement in public health to use systems thinking for complex societal challenges. The Thriving Teens approach therefore follows four steps: (1) mapping the system influencing preadolescent mental wellbeing for three Amsterdam districts, (2) identifying and prioritizing key challenges, (3) co-developing actions, and (4) implementing and evaluating the actions.

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💚The mental health of preadolescents – aged between nine and twelve – is under pressure. Recent studies indicate alarming trends: over 40% of primary school students experience psychosomatic complaints such as headaches or sleep problems on a weekly basis, and emotional problems among 8th-grade girls have increased from 14% to 33% in just four years. There are also differences among groups of preadolescents, such as children from different ethnic or cultural backgrounds, or between girls and boys.

🙋‍♀️ Meet Thriving Teens, an initiative aimed at organizing society in such a way that all preadolescents feel good. A society that emphasizes not only individual responsibility of teenagers and parents but collectively creates an environment that makes a healthy life easier. On the path to achieving collective resilience!

👥 To reach collective resilience, Thriving Teens focuses on changing the physical and social environment in which teenagers grow up, so that every teenager has an equal chance to thrive. Collaboration is central, and from the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, we join forces with institutions such as the municipality of Amsterdam, GGD Amsterdam, Amsterdam UMC, the Netherlands Youth Institute, MIND, and the Parent and Child Teams, all of whom want to contribute to positive change.

Curious about updates and more information? Follow the Thriving Teens LinkedIn page! Want to participate or have questions? Contact PhD candidate Eline Meuleman at [email protected].