Community activities are believed to contribute to the cultivation of social capital and social cohesion. For this study, a community ‘living room’, a community activity for lonely, elderly people in a mid-sized Dutch city, was studied. Interviews and observations showed that the community activity was experienced positively, and that social interactions in this particular setting were much appreciated in the face of loneliness. This held not only true for the participants, but also for the volunteers. Nevertheless, the activity did not significantly contribute to the development of social capital. Social contacts established during the activity did not extend beyond the setting. A general lack of trust is seen as a major factor inhibiting the development of social contacts beyond the setting.
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Although social frailty has been described from a theoretical perspective, the lived experiences of older adults regarding social frailty are yet unknown. In this paper, we aim to (a) gain more in-depth insights into community-dwelling and assisted-living older adults' experiences of social frailty and (b) explore the differences in these experiences between these two groups. We conduct a thematic analysis of 38 interviews with community-dwelling and assisted-living older adults in rural villages the Netherlands. We structure our findings along three overarching themes which highlight different aspects of the social frailty experiences of our participants: (a) present resources and activities to fulfil social needs, (b) resources and activities that have been lost, and (c) how they manage and adapt to changes in resources and activities over time. Loneliness is only reported among the community-dwelling participants, while the loss of mobility and participation in (social) activities is experienced most strongly by the assisted-living participants. These findings challenge the widespread policies and practices of ageing in place. We conclude that for some older adults, living in assisted arrangements is preferred over ageing in place, as doing so can prevent social frailty. The key reason for this is that life in assisted living is likely to bring about new social resources and activities, which may serve to fulfil the social needs of older adults.
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In this paper, we apply a civic perspective and social innovation theory to examine how residents of a Dutch village experiencing rural depopulation and austerity reforms evaluate a civic initiative aimed at improving liveability, and what explains their evaluation. Using multivariate statistical analysis, we found that most residents were positive about the initiative and its contribution to local liveability. We also discovered that a substantial group knew very little about the initiative and that low-income groups, in particular, lacked the interest to identify and become engaged with it. Voluntary engagement, however, did not necessarily result in a positive evaluation. Above all, tangible outputs explained citizens’ appreciation. A perceived increase in collaboration within the village and novel forms of collaboration with the local government also proved important, but only when they were accompanied by realised tangible outputs.
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BACKGROUND: Loneliness is expected to become an even bigger social problem in the upcoming decades, because of the growing number of older adults. It has been argued that the use of social network sites can aid in decreasing loneliness and improving mental health. The purpose of this study was to examine whether and how social network sites usage is related to loneliness and mental health in community-dwelling older adults. METHOD: The study population included community-dwelling older adults aged 60 and over residing in the Netherlands (n = 626) collected through the LISS panel (www.lissdata.nl). Univariate and multivariate linear regression analyses, adjusted for potentially important confounders, were conducted in order to investigate the relation between social network sites usage and (emotional and social) loneliness and mental health. RESULTS: More than half of the individuals (56.2%) reported to use social network sites at least several times per week. Social network sites usage appeared unrelated to loneliness in general, and to emotional and social loneliness in particular. Social network sites usage also appeared unrelated to mental health. Several significant associations between related factors and the outcomes at hand were detected. CONCLUSION: In this sample, which was representative for the Dutch population, social network sites usage was unrelated to loneliness and/or mental health. The results indicate that a simple association between social network site usage and loneliness and mental health as such, cannot automatically be assumed in community-dwelling older adults.
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The research group ‘Community resilience, participation and social learning’ of theprofessorship Sustainable River Management at Van Hall Larenstein University of Applied Sciences, in the Netherlands explores the contribution of community art and visual arts in relation to complex public participation processes in a context of sustainability.
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Purpose: The study aims to understand the meaning of event-based and place-based community practices, as well as the resulting social impacts. Design/methodology/approach: An ethnomethodological approach was followed (participant observation and interviews were supplemented by secondary data), with the analysis being exploratory and interpretative. Findings: The festival and the place reinforce the community’s social practices, which have impacts beyond the festival, benefiting individuals, the community and the place, becoming a means for valorisation and diffusion of the rural way of life, and placemaking. Research limitations/implications: In this study the authors focus on social practices in the context of an event and of a place (the village where the event occurs). The authors connect to theories of practice, which they apply in the analysis. The value of the study lies on the underlying mechanisms (how communities exercise social practices in the context of festivals, and what social impacts may lead to) rather than its context-dependent specific results. Practical implications: National and regional authorities can play a role in providing local communities with adequate tools to overcome the challenges they encounter. This can be done by issuing appropriate (events) plans and policies while giving room for the locals to voice their opinions. Social implications: Community-based festivals are key social practices that can strategically impact placemaking, strengthening community bonding, forging connections with outsiders and promoting well-being practices that discourage rural depopulation. Originality/value: There is a scarcity of research that deepens the understanding of the role of festivals in placemaking and their social impacts, particularly in the rural context. This study contributes to closing this gap by focussing on the social practices of a community-based festival in a village in the interior of Portugal.
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Neighbourhood interventions are important for creating supportive structures for parents and children and for other community members. Little is known, however, about what works for whom in what situation. The aim of this study was to gain a better understanding of what works for whom in community interventions in the neighbourhood. Realist synthesis was used as a review methodology to examine community interventions. Six databases were searched for studies published between January 1st, 2000 and May 8th, 2020 and 28 community programs reported in 34 publications were included. Multiple rounds of coding and several discussions with experts and the project team were conducted to analyze these studies and programs, and to understand underlying assumptions of neighbourhood interventions. This resulted in the definition of ten important mechanisms of change in specific contexts. These were found on two levels: on an interpersonal level (e.g. social support) and on a community level (e.g. social norms). Positive mechanisms of change varied from supportive professionals to participants in the intervention, to co-production in developing the intervention. Negative mechanisms were only found on the community level and were related to professionals’ and community members’ skills. Mechanisms of change were found to be related to specific contexts, such as implementation strategies and the type of intervention. Professionals and municipalities can use these mechanisms of change to improve their interventions and neighbourhood practices.
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This project builds upon a collaboration which has been established since 15 years in the field of social work between teachers and lecturers of Zuyd University, HU University and Elte University. Another network joining this project was CARe Europe, an NGO aimed at improving community care throughout Europe. Before the start of the project already HU University, Tallinn Mental Health Centre and Kwintes were participating in this network. In the course of several international meetings (e.g. CARe Europe conference in Prague in 2005, ENSACT conferences in Dubrovnik in 2009, and Brussels in April 2011, ESN conference in Brussels in March 2011), and many local meetings, it became clear that professionals in the social sector have difficulties to change current practices. There is a great need to develop new methods, which professionals can use to create community care.
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This publication forms part of the European Community Support research project, which aims to create better conditions for the social inclusion of persons with impairments in four cities (Amersfoort, Maastricht, Budapest and Tallinn). The aim of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on 13 December 2006, is to try to enforce the philosophy of social inclusion in practice so that persons with impairments can participate in the community on an equal footing. Hungary and Estonia ratified the Convention on 20 July 2007 and 30 May 2012 respectively. The Netherlands supports the principles and the fundamental human rights that the Convention sets out. The current Dutch government has announced that it intends to ratify the Convention before 1 July 2015. In November 2012, however, the Dutch House of Representatives unanimously passed a motion by Arie Slob et al. asking for a ratification act to be submitted to the Council of State for its recommendations no later than 2013. Despite the fact that the Netherlands has not yet ratified the Convention, various amendments in line with the aim of the UN Convention have been made to legislation and regulations in the Netherlands in recent years. These are trickling down to the policies of local authorities and institutions, where changes are being set in motion towards a more inclusive society (see inter alia VNG 2010).
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The use of art (e.g. visualized narratives) in social work may stimulate dialogue between community members about family support in their neighbourhood. The Visualized Narratives on Parenting Interactions in the Neighbourhood (VN-PIN) were developed in order to foster this dialogue. The aim of this study was to evaluate the implementation of the VN-PIN in social work practice and to gain insight in mechanisms that stimulate dialogues supported by visualizations. A qualitative process evaluation was conducted to explore the use of the VN-PIN in various urban settings. We observed meetings (N = 14) where the VN-PIN was applied and interviewed professionals and community members (N = 81). The results of this study show that the VN-PIN intervention gives parents a voice and allows them to recognize and reflect on their own parenting behaviour, thereby contributing to mutual exchanges in a supportive community. The conclusion of this study is that the VN-PIN is a useful intervention that social work professionals can use to foster dialogues about parenting within diverse contexts in super-diverse neighbourhoods. The intervention fosters a supportive structure to share experiences of various community members. Future research is needed to further evaluate the experiences and satisfaction of community members with the intervention.
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