Co-design for sustainable youth mental health in Australia
Abstract
Youth mental health is a significant social issue garnering international attention. In Australia, young people experience disproportionately high rates of mental illness, coupled with limited uptake, retention and adherence to psychological services and treatments. Co-design offers human-centric principles and practices to solve complex, systemic issues, such as those in the mental health domain. This chapter examines the application of co-design in mental health studies to build a novel approach to co-design research in the context of youth mental health. Literature from across mental health, co-design, positive and sustainable psychology, and the public policy discourse is reviewed and analysed through a design thinking lens. By identifying the strengths and limitations of the current literature, a Youth Mental Health Co-design MModel is proposed. This augmented model draws on creative co-design methods, experience-based co-design, and low-contact co-design to offer a holistic approach to youth mental health research and practice. The Model offers an integrated tool for researchers to build appropriate studies to support inquiry into youth mental health challenges ranging from co-design for production and solving discrete problems, through to design for transformation, solving complex, wicked problems.
RAS ID
70716
Document Type
Book Chapter
Date of Publication
7-22-2024
Volume
5
Issue
1
School
School of Arts and Humanities
Copyright
subscription content
Publisher
Routledge
Identifier
Christopher Kueh: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8694-6371
Comments
Zabar, M., Peng, F., Davis, A., Kueh, C., & Gwilt, I. (2024). Co-design for sustainable youth mental health in Australia. In Design for Dementia, Mental Health and Wellbeing (pp. 37-49). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003318262-5