“Sticky Faith” in Australian Baptist Churches: Surveying Generational Participation and Ministry Priorities

Exchange ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 48 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-25
Author(s):  
Darren Cronshaw

Abstract Australian Baptist Churches share a demographic aging trend with many Western churches — they engage proportionately more older and less young people. Moreover, a significant proportion of children and youth lack “sticky faith” and leave church. The 2016 National Church Life Survey identifies trends in generational participation and ministry priorities. Interviewed Baptist young adults and leaders suggest as reasons youth disengage from church: external societal pressures, “siloed” programs and lack of discipleship, relationships and service opportunities. Many Australian Baptist churches are adopting a more “generational” and less “siloed” approach, but there is room for improvement in resourcing churches for “sticky” faith formation.

Exchange ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 48 (2) ◽  
pp. 156-181
Author(s):  
Darren Cronshaw

Abstract Australian Baptist Churches are seeking to respond to the broader trend of increasing disengagement of young people from church and faith. This article discusses Australian Baptist perspectives on generational ministries from the 2016 National Church Life Survey and interviews of generational pastors and young adults. In conversation with Fuller Youth Institute’s research, it explores how churches are “growing young”: fostering spiritual formation and discipleship with a range of spiritual practices; cultivating relationships and belonging including less “siloed” and more “generational” connections; and catalysing holistic mission including faith-sharing, community service and creation care.


Nutrients ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (7) ◽  
pp. 2025
Author(s):  
Brigita Mieziene ◽  
Arunas Emeljanovas ◽  
Natalja Fatkulina ◽  
Rimantas Stukas

A poor diet leads to serious health risks and accounts for a significant proportion of deaths. Young adults are the population whose health behaviors particularly need to be studied in terms of nutrition because they are in a period of life when the effects of nutrition accumulate to health outcomes that usually appear later in life in forms of disease or infirmity. The aim of this study is to examine the dietary pattern and its relationships with physical activity and covariates, such as body mass index, gender, age and education among Lithuanian young adults of 18–36 years old. A cross-sectional study was performed among Lithuanian young people aged 18–36 years. Snowball sampling—a non-probability, convenient sampling strategy—was used. In total, data were collected from 3031 study participants: 1723 (56.8%) were male and 1308 (43.2%) were female. The mean age was 23.72 ± 4.80 years. Adherence to a dietary pattern was evaluated using the Mediterranean Diet Adherence Screener (MEDAS). Physical activity, height, weight and education data were also gathered. About 7% of young people fully complied with the health-related Mediterranean diet, and one-third had poor compliance. Non-compliance is mostly related to the underconsumption of olive oil, nuts, fish, seafood, legumes and wine, as well as the overconsumption of red meat. The female gender (β = 0.26; p < 0.01), higher education (β = 0.30; p < 0.01) and a sufficient level of physical activity (β = 0.15; p < 0.01) predict a healthier diet. These study results should be considered by nutrition policymakers and public health authorities to improve policies and develop intervention plans for improving the nutrition habits of young adults in order to prevent health-damaging outcomes later in their life.


Crisis ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 36 (3) ◽  
pp. 211-219 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vinod Singaravelu ◽  
Anne Stewart ◽  
Joanna Adams ◽  
Sue Simkin ◽  
Keith Hawton

Abstract. Background: The Internet is used by young people at risk of self-harm to communicate, find information, and obtain support. Aims: We aimed to identify and analyze websites potentially accessed by these young people. Method: Six search terms, relating to self-harm/suicide and depression, were input into four search engines. Websites were analyzed for access, content/purpose, and tone. Results: In all, 314 websites were included in the analysis. Most could be accessed without restriction. Sites accessed by self-harm/suicide search terms were mostly positive or preventive in tone, whereas sites accessed by the term ways to kill yourself tended to have a negative tone. Information about self-harm methods was common with specific advice on how to self-harm in 15.8% of sites, encouragement of self-harm in 7.0%, and evocative images of self-harm/suicide in 20.7%. Advice on how to get help was given in 56.1% of sites. Conclusion: Websites relating to suicide or self-harm are easily accessed. Many sites are potentially helpful. However, a significant proportion of sites are potentially harmful through normalizing or encouraging self-harm. Enquiry regarding Internet use should be routinely included while assessing young people at risk.


2020 ◽  
Vol 62 (1) ◽  
pp. 38-42
Author(s):  
Anna Kostiukow ◽  
Wojciech Strzelecki ◽  
Mateusz W. Romanowski ◽  
Marta Rosołek ◽  
Ewa Mojs ◽  
...  

Introduction: The study is aimed at drawing the attention of the medical environment to the mental health aspects of young patients as a factor that significantly influences the efficiency of their rheumatic disease treatment. Aim: This paper is to check the risk of depression among a group of adolescents and young adults with rheumatic diseases. Material and Methods: The study was conducted among a group of 68 late adolescents and young adults (18-22 years old) with rheumatic diseases. The control group consisted of 102 young people (18-22 years old) without a diagnosed chronic disease. Risk of depression was measured using a screening tool – the Kutcher Adolescent Depression Scale (KADS). Results: The analysis showed that the probability of depression in the study group was 35.3%. In the control group, this rate was 19.6%. The results were statistical significance (p=0.028). Conclusions: The results of this study prove that the risk of depression among adolescents and young adults with rheumatic diseases is significantly higher than in healthy young people. The highest risk of depression is related to feeling tired, fatigue, low energy levels and lack of motivation as well as feeling worried, nervous, panicky, tense, keyed-up and anxious.


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elvira Perez Vallejos ◽  
Liz Dowthwaite ◽  
Helen Creswich ◽  
Virginia Portillo ◽  
Ansgar Koene ◽  
...  

BACKGROUND Algorithms rule the online environments and are essential for performing data processing, filtering, personalisation and other tasks. Research has shown that children and young people make up a significant proportion of Internet users, however little attention has been given to their experiences of algorithmically-mediated online platforms, or the impact of them on their mental health and well-being. The algorithms that govern online platforms are often obfuscated by a lack of transparency in their online Terms and Conditions and user agreements. This lack of transparency speaks to the need for protecting the most vulnerable users from potential online harms. OBJECTIVE To capture young people's experiences when being online and perceived impact on their well-being. METHODS In this paper, we draw on qualitative and quantitative data from a total of 260 children and young people who took part in a ‘Youth Jury’ to bring their opinions to the forefront, elicit discussion of their experiences of using online platforms, and perceived psychosocial impact on users. RESULTS The results of the study revealed the young people’s positive as well as negative experiences of using online platforms. Benefits such as being convenient and providing entertainment and personalised search results were identified. However, the data also reveals participants’ concerns for their privacy, safety and trust when online, which can have a significant impact on their well-being. CONCLUSIONS We conclude by making recommendations that online platforms acknowledge and enact on their responsibility to protect the privacy of their young users, recognising the significant developmental milestones that this group experience during these early years, and the impact that technology may have on them. We argue that governments need to incorporate policies that require technologists and others to embed the safeguarding of users’ well-being within the core of the design of Internet products and services to improve the user experiences and psychological well-being of all, but especially those of children and young people. CLINICALTRIAL N/A


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alanna McCrory

UNSTRUCTURED Users of highly visual social media (HVSM), such as Snapchat and Instagram, share their messages through images, rather than relying on words. A significant proportion of people that use these platforms are adolescents. Previous research reveals mixed evidence regarding the impact of online social technologies on this age group’s mental wellbeing, but it is uncertain whether the psychological effects of visual content alone differ from text-driven social media. This scoping review maps existing literature that has published evidence about highly visual social media, specifically its psychological impact on young people. Nine electronic databases and grey literature from 2010 until March 2019 were reviewed for articles describing any aspect of visual social media, young people and their mental health. The screening process retrieved 239 articles. With the application of eligibility criteria, this figure was reduced to 25 articles for analysis. Results indicate a paucity of data that exclusively examines HVSM. The predominance of literature relies on quantitative methods to achieve its objectives. Many findings are inconsistent and lack the richness that qualitative data may provide to explore the reasons for theses mixed findings.


Author(s):  
Jessica N. Fish ◽  
Laura Baams ◽  
Jenifer K. McGuire

Sexual and gender minority (SGM) young people are coming of age at a time of dynamic social and political changes with regard to LGBTQ rights and visibility around the world. And yet, contemporary cohorts of SGM youth continue to evidence the same degree of compromised mental health demonstrated by SGM youth of past decades. The authors review the current research on SGM youth mental health, with careful attention to the developmental and contextual characteristics that complicate, support, and thwart mental health for SGM young people. Given a large and rapidly growing body of science in this area, the authors strategically review research that reflects the prevalence of these issues in countries around the world but also concentrate on how mental health concerns among SGM children and youth are shaped by experiences with schools, families, and communities. Promising mental health treatment strategies for this population are reviewed. The chapter ends with a focus on understudied areas in the SGM youth mental health literature, which may offer promising solutions to combat SGM population health disparities and promote mental health among SGM young people during adolescence and as they age across the life course.


BMC Neurology ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Catherine Arnaud ◽  
Carine Duffaut ◽  
Jérôme Fauconnier ◽  
Silke Schmidt ◽  
Kate Himmelmann ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Effective inclusion in society for young people with disabilities is increasingly seen as generating opportunities for self-development, and improving well-being. However, significant barriers remain in the vast majority of activities meaningful for young adults. Research argues that various personal (disabilities, health) and environmental (access to the resources needed, accessible environment, discrimination, lack of personal economic independence) factors contribute to limited participation. However, previous studies conducted in young people with cerebral palsy (CP) mainly investigated the transition period to adulthood, and did not fully consider the whole range of impairment severity profiles or environmental barriers. In this study, we will use the follow-up of the SPARCLE cohort and a comparison group from the general population (1) to investigate the impact of the environment on participation and quality of life of young adults with CP, (2) to determine predictors of a successful young adulthood in educational, professional, health and social fields, (3) to compare quality of life and frequency of participation in social, work and recreational activities with the general population, (4) to document on participation and quality of life in those with severe disabilities. Methods The SPARCLE3 study has a combined longitudinal and cross-sectional design. Young adults with CP aged 22 to 27 years in 6 European regions previously enrolled in the SPARCLE cohort or newly recruited will be invited to self-complete a comprehensive set of questionnaires exploring participation (daily life and discretionary activities), health-related quality of life, body function, personal factors (health, personal resources), and contextual factors (availability of needed environmental items, family environment, services provision) during home visits supervised by trained researchers. Proxy-reports or adapted questionnaires will be used for those with the most severe impairments. The recruitment of a large group from the general population (online survey) will enable to identify life areas where the discrepancies between young people with CP and their able-bodied peers are the most significant. Discussion This study will help identify to what extent disabilities and barriers in environment negatively affect participation and quality of life, and how previous valued experiences during childhood or adolescence might modulate these effects.


2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yael D. Lewis ◽  
Lucy Gallop ◽  
Iain C. Campbell ◽  
Ulrike Schmidt

Abstract Background Most psychiatric disorders have their onset in childhood or adolescence, and if not fully treated have the potential for causing life-long psycho-social and physical sequelae. Effective psychotherapeutic and medication treatments exist, but a significant proportion of children and young people do not make a full recovery. Thus, novel, safe, brain-based alternatives or adjuncts to conventional treatments are needed. Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) and transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) are non-invasive brain stimulation (NIBS) techniques which have shown clinical benefits in adult psychiatric conditions. However, in children and young people their efficacy is not well established. The objective of this study will be to systematically evaluate the evidence on clinical effects of NIBS in children and young people with psychiatric disorders, assessing disorder-specific symptoms, mood and neurocognitive functions. Methods We designed and registered a study protocol for a systematic review. We will include randomised and non-randomised controlled trials and observational studies (e.g. cohort, case-control, case series) assessing the effects of NIBS in children and young people (aged ≤ 24 years old) for psychiatric disorders. The primary outcome will be reduction of disorder-specific symptoms. Secondary outcomes will include effects on mood and cognition. A comprehensive search from database inception onwards will be conducted in MEDLINE, EMBASE and PsycINFO. Grey literature will be identified through searching multiple clinical trial registries. Two reviewers will independently screen all citations, full-text articles and abstract data. The methodological quality of the studies will be appraised using appropriate tools. We will provide a narrative synthesis of the evidence and according to heterogeneity will conduct an appropriate meta-analysis. Additional analyses will be conducted to explore the potential sources of heterogeneity. Discussion This systematic review will provide a broad and comprehensive evaluation of the evidence on clinical effects of NIBS in children and young people with psychiatric disorders. Our findings will be reported according to the PRISMA guidelines and will be of interest to multiple audiences (including patients, researchers, healthcare professionals and policy-makers). Results will be published in a peer-reviewed journal. Systematic review registration PROSPERO CRD42019158957


BMJ Open ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (11) ◽  
pp. e038471
Author(s):  
Rachel M Taylor ◽  
Lorna A Fern ◽  
Julie Barber ◽  
Javier Alvarez-Galvez ◽  
Richard Feltbower ◽  
...  

ObjectivesIn England, healthcare policy advocates specialised age-appropriate services for teenagers and young adults (TYA), those aged 13 to 24 years at diagnosis. Specialist Principal Treatment Centres (PTC) provide enhanced TYA age-specific care, although many still receive care in adult or children’s cancer services. We present the first prospective structured analysis of quality of life (QOL) associated with the amount of care received in a TYA-PTCDesignLongitudinal cohort study.SettingHospitals delivering inpatient cancer care in England.Participants1114 young people aged 13 to 24 years newly diagnosed with cancer.InterventionExposure to the TYA-PTC defined as patients receiving NO-TYA-PTC care with those receiving ALL-TYA-PTC and SOME-TYA-PTC care.Primary outcomeQuality of life measured at five time points: 6, 12, 18, 24 and 36 months after diagnosis.ResultsGroup mean total QOL improved over time for all patients, but for those receiving NO-TYA-PTC was an average of 5.63 points higher (95% CI 2.77 to 8.49) than in young people receiving SOME-TYA-PTC care, and 4·17 points higher (95% CI 1.07 to 7.28) compared with ALL-TYA-PTC care. Differences were greatest 6 months after diagnosis, reduced over time and did not meet the 8-point level that is proposed to be clinically significant. Young people receiving NO-TYA-PTC care were more likely to have been offered a choice of place of care, be older, from more deprived areas, in work and have less severe disease. However, analyses adjusting for confounding factors did not explain the differences between TYA groups.ConclusionsReceipt of some or all care in a TYA-PTC was associated with lower QOL shortly after cancer diagnosis. The NO-TYA-PTC group had higher QOL 3 years after diagnosis, however those receiving all or some care in a TYA-PTC experienced more rapid QOL improvements. Receipt of some care in a TYA-PTC requires further study.


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