Gallery: featured research projects
Dynamics of Youth brings together outstanding youth research from all seven faculties at Utrecht University. Researchers from a range of disciplines pool their expertise to answer crucial questions for future generations. Here we present a representative selection of research projects. You can find more projects under the various communities.
Overarching projects
Diverse Minds
Diverse Minds is a network in which researchers from various disciplines collaborate on research into neurodiversity, such as autism spectrum disorders, ADHD, dyslexia and language development disorders.
EVENING project
The EVENING project is investigating the effects of two measures relating to pre-school education: the extension of hours to 960 and the standard for the deployment of educational policy officers.
Is the feeling of loneliness the same for everyone in the world?
Are young people from cultures where family plays a more central role perhaps less lonely? Luzia Heu is investigating how culture influences feelings of loneliness.
De rol van AI in gezinnen
Social robots, smart speakers, Google Home and Amazon Alexa: they are finding their way into the home. But what role do these forms of artificial intelligence play within the family?
Early Childhood
COVID-19 insights for Utrecht’s municipal youth policy
Conducted research in collaboration with the City of Utrecht into the effects of the pandemic on child and youth development; the findings directly informed new policy.
REACH conference Early Childhood
More than fifty researchers from all seven UU faculties presented their work; this was followed by a special issue in the journal *Infant and Child Development*.
Thriving & Healthy Youth
SPACES project: inclusive urban spaces for children with disabilities
What does an outdoor space look like where every child can take part? During SPACES, children and young people, parents, scientists, urban designers and policymakers come together to explore inclusive play and sport in the city.
IMPROVA: Improving teenagers’ mental wellbeing
IMPROVA aims to make significant progress in the field of young people’s mental wellbeing by developing an eHealth intervention platform. Teenagers, teachers, parents, experts and policymakers are working together on this across Europe and beyond.
Becoming Adults in a Changing World
Climate emotions in the classroom
Michiel van Harskamp and Andrik Becht developed practical guidelines for teachers on how to take young people’s concerns about climate change seriously, in collaboration with NJI, UNICEF Netherlands and the Young Climate Movement.
10 Years Up: longitudinal youth study continued
The ‘Becoming Adults in a Changing World’ community provided the funding to enable this study into young people’s goals, self-regulation and well-being to continue for a further six years.
Youth Education & Life Skills
Encounters with Difference
In a school year featuring two elections, sensitive topics tend to come up more often: in the playground, in the corridors and during lessons. But how do you deal with them appropriately? Researchers looked into this with pupils and teachers at secondary schools in Utrecht.
Bridging Continents: African-European youth cooperation
A three-year project involving students and experts from the Netherlands, Uganda, Kenya and Italy; a summer school led to the creation of an interdisciplinary podcast on digital disinformation.