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- Title
Widening participation and a capabilities approach -- making it work.
- Authors
Richardson, Mark; Llewellyn, Penny; Williams, Sheree; Nias, Steve; Phillips, Rhiannon
- Abstract
Problems with mental health pose a large scale global challenge, which can be reduced by education, particularly in the field of widening participation (WP). Despite proven positive outcomes on mental health, target groups for WP seldom include those specifically experiencing mental illness. The capabilities approach suggests that freedom to achieve well-being depends less on the availability of resources, than on people's opportunity to choose from a whole range of available resources and to be informed and supported to use them in order to achieve their own concept of a good life. This 'capability' is seldom available to those who have mental ill health. This paper will discuss a WP project in which a small group of people experiencing mental health problems took part in a student-led research study, informed by the capabilities approach, at the local archive. The project will be described and there will be a discussion on the influence of WP and the capabilities approach on the work, and an evaluation of the impact of the study on the mental health of the participating students. This will demonstrate that results of the initiative were very positive -- the students gained confidence through the research. They also developed aspirations for the future, including participation in education.
- Subjects
MENTAL health; PSYCHIATRIC research; SERVICES for people with mental illness; ADULTS; CONTINUING education
- Publication
Widening Participation & Lifelong Learning, 2017, Vol 19, Issue 1, p33
- ISSN
1466-6529
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.5456/WPLL.19.1.33