“Jag vet faktiskt inte varför ingen vill anställa någon som mig” : En studie om arbetslösas upplevda delaktighet i aktivitet.

Syftet med studien var att beskriva hur arbetslösa personer i tjänsten Stöd och matchning upplever delaktighet i aktivitet. Författaren använde kvalitativ metod med induktiv ansats. Datainsamlingen genomfördes genom intervjuer med bedömningsinstrumentet OCAIRS-S som grund. Fem deltagare rekryterades med bekvämlighetsurval på en mindre ort i Sverige. Författaren spelade in intervjuerna för att sedan transkribera och bearbeta dem genom en kvalitativ innehållsanalys med stöd av komponenter i ICF. Resultatet visade bland annat att deltagarna hade lätt att ge upp och saknade rutiner i sitt vardagsliv. Alla upplevde även att de klarar sig bra på sin inkomst och hade möjlighet att utföra alla aktiviteter de ville och behövde göra. De spenderade mycket tid ensamma och hade några få nära relationer. De flesta trivdes i arbetslösheten och alla såg positivt på framtiden. Ingen av dem letade aktivt efter möjligheter till arbete och de var inte heller initiativtagande. Slutsatserna som gjordes var att deltagarna saknar proaktivitet och motivation till att skaffa arbete. De skulle ha nytta av arbetsterapi för aktivitetsträning och/eller anpassning av aktiviteten ”att söka arbete”. Vidare forskning med större underlag behövs för en djupare förståelse.

Möjlighet till delaktighet i meningsfulla aktiviteter under sjukhusvistelse. : En beskrivning av barns egna upplevelser

Tidigare forskning inom detta område har fokuserat på barns vård, däremot har barns upplevelser utifrån ett aktivitetsperspektiv under sjukhusvistelse inte uppmärksammats. Författarnas uppfattning var att aktiviteter som erbjuds på barn- och ungdomskliniker oftast passar yngre barn och därför ansågs det relevant att tillfråga äldre barn om deras upplevelser av att kunna vara delaktiga i aktiviteter på sjukhus. Syftet var att beskriva barns upplevelser av möjlighet till delaktighet i meningsfulla aktiviteter under sjukhusvistelse. Kvalitativ metod användes med semi-strukturerade intervjuer. Ett bekvämlighetsurval användes och respondenterna var 12 barn i åldrarna 8-15 som befann sig på två barn- och ungdomskliniker i södra Sverige. Datamaterialet bearbetades med en kvalitativ innehållsanalys. Tolkningen av datamaterialet resulterade i det övergripande temat “Upplevelse av möjlighet till delaktighet i meningsfulla aktiviteter”. Resultatet delades in i tre kategorier; delaktighet, meningsfull aktivitet och aktiviteter på sjukhus. Slutsatsen var att barnen upplevde både möjligheter och begränsningar i att kunna vara delaktiga i aktiviteter under sin sjukhusvistelse. Majoriteten av barnen upplevde sig ha goda möjligheter till att kunna vara delaktiga i meningsfulla aktiviteter såsom att vistas på lekterapi, spela tv-spel och umgås med familj och vänner. 

Children with intellectual disabilities’ perceptions of their participation in activities in everyday life – a pilot study : A minor field study conducted in Ethiopia

Background: Children with disabilities living in low and middle income countries’ perceptions of participation are not shown in research. These perceptions are important for providing appropriate interventions. Aim: To describe how children aged 8-12 with an intellectual disability living in Ethiopia perceive their situation regarding participation in activities in everyday life. Method: A descriptive design with a quantitative approach was used. The sample was gathered using consecutive sampling. Fifteen structured interviews were conducted, using “Picture my participation,” an instrument under development. Analyses were made using SPSS Statistics and Microsoft Excel. Results: The children perceived that they participated in activities in everyday life. There was a broad variation in the activities the children prioritized as most important. On a group level, they were very involved in these activities. The majority did not experience any barriers to perform these activities. Conclusions: The perceptions of the majority of the children were that they were involved in daily activities. They did not experience any barriers to participation. The results should be read with caution and generalization is not possible, due to the sample characteristics and that the instrument is under development.

School belongingness and mental health functioning across the primary-secondary transition in a mainstream sample: Multi-group cross-lagged analyses

The relationship between school belongingness and mental health functioning before and after the primary-secondary school transition has not been previously investigated in students with and without disabilities. This study used a prospective longitudinal design to test the bi-directional relationships between these constructs, by surveying 266 students with and without disabilities and their parents, 6-months before and after the transition to secondary school. Cross-lagged multi-group analyses found student perception of belongingness in the final year of primary school to contribute to change in their mental health functioning a year later. The beneficial longitudinal effects of school belongingness on subsequent mental health functioning were evident in all student subgroups; even after accounting for prior mental health scores and the cross-time stability in mental health functioning and school belongingness scores. Findings of the current study substantiate the role of school contextual influences on early adolescent mental health functioning. They highlight the importance for primary and secondary schools to assess students' school belongingness and mental health functioning and transfer these records as part of the transition process, so that appropriate scaffolds are in place to support those in need. Longer term longitudinal studies are needed to increase the understanding of the temporal sequencing between school belongingness and mental health functioning of all mainstream students.

The impact of personal background and school contextual factors on academic competence and mental health functioning across the primary-secondary school transition

Students negotiate the transition to secondary school in different ways. While some thrive on the opportunity, others are challenged. A prospective longitudinal design was used to determine the contribution of personal background and school contextual factors on academic competence (AC) and mental health functioning (MHF) of 266 students, 6-months before and after the transition to secondary school. Data from 197 typically developing students and 69 students with a disability were analysed using hierarchical linear regression modelling. Both in primary and secondary school, students with a disability and from socially disadvantaged backgrounds gained poorer scores for AC and MHF than their typically developing and more affluent counterparts. Students who attended independent and mid-range sized primary schools had the highest concurrent AC. Those from independent primary schools had the lowest MHF. The primary school organisational model significantly influenced post-transition AC scores; with students from Kindergarten--Year 7 schools reporting the lowest scores, while those from the Kindergarten--Year 12 structure without middle school having the highest scores. Attending a school which used the Kindergarten--Year 12 with middle school structure was associated with a reduction in AC scores across the transition. Personal background factors accounted for the majority of the variability in post-transition AC and MHF. The contribution of school contextual factors was relatively minor. There is a potential opportunity for schools to provide support to disadvantaged students before the transition to secondary school, as they continue to be at a disadvantage after the transition.