conceptualisation of health V1
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Understanding how looked after young people conceptualise 'health'
IRAS ID
180019
Contact name
Diane Dixon
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Strathclyde
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 3 months, 1 days
Research summary
Children in Scotland, who are in receipt of a voluntary or compulsory supervision order, are described as 'looked after'. Looked after children, can be looked after in local authority accommodation, with foster carers or may remain in their own homes. It is known that these children experience significantly poorer psychological and physical health than their peers, and that this is especially the case for children who are looked after at home. Much work has been done to further our understanding of the mental health needs of this group of young people but rather less work has examined their physical health. There is ample evidence to indicate that how we think about our health affects how we look after our health, for example, it affects our likelihood of attending health screening, being vaccinated, our diet, our level of physical activity, whether we smoke and how much we drink. Currently we know very little about how young people who are looked after at home think about their health or what they understand by the term ‘health’. This study will use in-depth interviews with young people, who are currently looked after at home, to gain insight into how these young people understand the concept of ‘health’. Understanding their health related beliefs and how ‘health’ is conceptualised is a prerequisite for the development of effective interventions to support their health related lifestyle choices and how services might best be designed and delivered to address their particular needs.
REC name
East of Scotland Research Ethics Service REC 1
REC reference
15/ES/0083
Date of REC Opinion
19 May 2015
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion