Giving a voice to children and adolescents: school students as co-researchers to develop a conceptual model of health literacy

Health literacy is concerned with the skills and capacities of people to meet the complex demands in a modern health society. Health literacy is viewed as an important factor to promote health and maintain good health and well-being. Childhood and adolescence are crucial phases in life where health behaviours, attitudes and social norms form. Exisiting definitions and concepts of health literacy in childhood and youth are based on the concepts that were developed for adults. They fall short, because the views of children and adolescents and their living environments like family, school, peer groups and the role of digital media were not adequately considered. The main aim of the proposed project is to use a co-research approach to develop a concept of health literacy with and for children and adolescents. The project consists of five work packages (WP): WP1 is concerned with project management, in WP2 we will carry out a systematic review of existing research on the meaning and perceptions of health literacy by children and adolescents as well as parents or guardians. In WP3 we will conduct co-research on children’s and adolescents’ views on health literacy with young people of different age groups. In WP4 we will develop a conceptual framework for health literacy in children and adolescents together with the children and youth co-researchers. WP5 is concerned with dissemination of the results of the project.