EVALUATION COMMITTEE

The Faculty Council has appointed the following adjudication committee to evaluate the thesis and the associated lecture: 

• Dr. Robert J Donovan, Adjunct Professor, School of Human Sciences, University of Western Australia, and Adjunct Professor, School of Medical and Health Sciences, Edith Cowan University.
• Dr. Bárbara Barbosa Neves, Senior lecturer in Sociology, Monash University.
• Dr. Lone Jørgensen, HST, Aalborg University (Chairman).

Moderator:
Dr. Charlotte Overgaard, HST, Aalborg University

ABSTRACT

Social relationships play a central role in people’s mental health, and interventions that support people in developing, maintaining and engaging in rewarding relationships form a central part of interventions to promote mental health in several countries. In Aalborg municipality (Denmark), a web-based citizen-to-citizen platform named Boblberg.dk forms part of the municipality’s strategy to promote belonging and mental health in the general population. A growing body of literature has explored the potential of digital technologies to support social relationships and mental health. Even so, further research is needed to determine how, to whom and under what circumstances these technologies may benefit as part of community services to promote the development of rewarding social relationships and mental health. This knowledge is central to the design of effective interventions and to avoid unintendedly causing harm.

The overall objective of this study was to provide an expanded theoretical and empirical basis to inform the development of digital interventions based on social relationships to promote mental health. At the centre of this, the study particularly sought to contribute to the advancement of understanding of how, to whom and under what circumstances digital interventions may be used as part of community services to promote belonging and mental health. The thesis consists of 3 sub-studies.

Sub-study 1 is a systematic review and synthesis of six middle-range theories linking social relationships to mental health. The aim was to explore key theoretical assumptions in order to explain 1) how social relationships influence mental health and 2) specific circumstances that distinguish beneficial social relationships from relationships that have either no effect or cause harm. Results of the synthesis were discussed in relation to general interventions, and implications for the use of digital interventions as novel tools to support social relationships and mental health were drawn out (Andersen et al., 2021).

Sub-study 2 is a realist evaluation of the web-based citizen-to-citizen platform, Boblberg.dk, used in community care in a Danish municipality to promote belonging and mental health. The study aimed to answer the questions of how, for whom and under what circumstances the platform worked to promote citizens’ sense of belonging and mental health (Andersen et al., 2020).

Sub-study 3 is a qualitative study based on critical realism performed with the aim of exploring underlying social structures that influenced users’ success with the web-based platform Boblberg.dk as well as the targeting of the platform to vulnerable groups (Andersen et al., under review)

The findings from this thesis showed that digital technologies such as the web-based platform Boblberg.dk, may function as helpful tools in community care services aimed at supporting relationships and mental health in a local community. Quality and content of connections and relationships facilitated through these tools are vital to their positive effects. Digital technologies introduce well-known and new risks that may cause interventions to miss their intended effects or cause harm. The impact of such tools largely depends on citizens’ ability to take advantage of opportunities provided to build new rewarding relationships. Citizens in disadvantaged positions, citizens with limited literacy and citizens with relational challenges may need particular support to benefit. A focus on supporting the quality of relationships and supporting citizens in need for support to benefit from these technologies may be valuable in intervention design and delivery to strengthen potential benefits.