The mental health and well-being of youth and children (immigrants, refugees and indigenous people) is a major field of expertise in SHERPA’s research programme. The projects developed all promote an ecosystemic and multi-sectorial perspective. They look at youth within their relationship to their family, school, community environments, etc. Research projects on the organization of primary youth services as well as the evaluation of programmes and initiatives to improve the well-being of immigrant and indigenous youth are also indexed in this section.
Since 1994, the research team has developed creative expression programmes, in prevention and promotion of mental health of refugee and immigrant youth. These programmes are designed for a school context, primarily the integration classes for new immigrant children. Three programmes have been developed to meet the social and developmental needs of children according to age (play in the sand, art and stories, and theatre). These programmes have been evaluated numerous times and are one of the cutting-edge practices of our University Institute. Creative expression programmes >>
Since 2012, SHERPA has also supported a community of practice (CoP) bringing together more than 200 primary youth workers from teams in Montreal. This CoP promotes the sharing of tools and know-how among youth workers and provides a space for exchange and mutual support through a variety of methods. A website supports the activities of the community of practice.
Mental Health and Well-being of Immigrant and Refugee Children
- Bien-être des enfants et climat social au Québec: L’expérience de jeunes issus de l’immigration
- Study of the post-migration trajectories of refugee and asylum-seeking children who came to Quebec in 2016-2017: educational and systematic elements facilitating or disadvantaging their socio-educational experience [French]
- Creative expression and language awareness programmes to support academic success of refugee children [French]
- Mental health at school: taming the complexity [French]
- Promoting the social and academic integration of Syrian refugee students by developing their feeling of belonging to the school, their and their family’s psychological well-being [French]
- Favoriser la réussite scolaire des élèves immigrants en développant leur bien-être psychologique et celui de leurs familles
- Play in the Sand workshops to improve the emotional well-being and cognitive development of refugee children in kindergarten: a comparison between Sherbrooke and Montreal [French]
- Connecting to others drawing: creative expression workshops for young immigrant children
- The Rough Journey of Children and Adolescent Refugees: Intervening to Address Suffering and Support Wellbeing
Mental Health and Well-being of Indigenous Youth
- Illagiinut : communities mobilized for the well-being of today’s children today and tomorrow’s parents [French]
- Atautsikut: Implementing a community of practice in youth mental health and wellness in Nunavik
- Collaborative mental health care from communities to professionals to policy change for Inuit of Nunavik