Summary

Universal school- based interventions are often proposed as a means to tackle the decline in youth mental health, as most youth attend school and adolescents express a desire to learn about mental health in schools. While the initial results from these interventions seem promising, recent critiques suggest that mental health interventions might not be effective for everyone and could even have negative effects for some. Here, we will use a novel approach that combines insights from developmental science with youth participation The main objective of this project is to collaborate with youth to identify which universal school-based initiatives effectively enhance youth mental well-being. So far, it remains unclear which school-based mental health interventions are tailored to the fundamental developmental needs of youth in high school and mbo. Second, our youth participatory methods have identified a promising contextual resilience factor: role models. This underscores the significant impact that teachers and other influential figures can have on youth’s wellbeing.