Objectives: The overall aim was to investigate determinants and consequences of global non-comparative self-ratings of health (SRH). Concerning determinants, the aim was more specifically to investigate the association between age, year of investigation, stress-theory based psychobiological variables, and SRH. Materials and methods: Papers I and IV were based on eight ongoing population-based cohort studies, with sampling performed 1973-2003. The study-population consisted of 11,880 men and women, aged 25-99 years, providing 14,470 observations. Papers II and III were based on a longitudinal study of 212 adult, healthy, women and men. Results: In women, SRH declined linearly with age and year of investigation, after adjustment for influence of covariates, while in men the association was based on a third degree polynomial function. The most important covariates were complaint score, sick-leave or disability pension, and leisure time physical activity. The final model explained 76.2% of the variance in women and 74.5% in men. SRH was directly associated with psychological resources and inversely associated with psychological strain, in healthy, adult, women and men. In men with SRH which decreased to fair or poor, higher levels of prolactin and lower levels of testosterone were observed at follow-up as compared to baseline. There were no associations between endocrine variables and SRH in women. There was a significant inverse association between SRH and mortality, disability pension, and sick-leave during follow-up, in women and men, adjusted for covariates. Associations between SRH and mortality were robust during the follow-up period. Conclusions: Age and year of investigation were associated with SRH, but differently in women and men. Psychological resources and psychological strain were consistently associated with SRH, but there were no robust associations between endocrine measures and SRH. SRH was associated with mortality, disability pension, and sick-leave, during follow-up. The association between SRH and mortality was robust during the follow-up period

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This dissertation contains two secondary quantitative data analyses studies. In the first, implementation of the WannaBee Healthy? Be Smart! Be Active! Be a Leader! health science curriculum was examined to expand understanding about teacher usage of an integrated health curriculum. Specifically, researchers assessed the amount of activities within each curriculum domain (i.e., books, creative expressions, language/literacy, math, science) and the number of activities within each theme of the lessons (i.e., nutrition, physical activity, sleep) utilized by participating teachers. Prior to implementation, teachers (N = 68; M age = 35.5 years old) attended a one-hour training where use of the curriculum and supplemental material toolkit were exhibited. Participants were instructed to implement the curriculum over the course of a month and directed to record lessons implemented on a teacher usage checklist, indicating a “Y+” if they taught the lesson and would likely teach it again, a “Y-” if they taught the lesson, but would not likely teach it again, and an “N” if the lesson was not implemented. An overall total number of activities and a total number of activities within each curriculum domain (e.g., language/literacy) and within each theme (e.g., nutrition) was calculated using a frequency analysis. Results show that more than 20% of reporting teachers (n = 10; 21.8%) implemented all or almost all (i.e., 49 or 50 lessons) of the curriculum’s 50 activities. Children had more exposure to the book domain and the theme of nutrition, with less engagement in the domain of math and sleep-themed lessons. Based on the results of the first study, the second study examined the association between the dosage of the WannaBee Healthy? curriculum implementation within each classroom (i.e., frequency use of curriculum domains; frequency use of lesson themes) and child health knowledge outcomes (e.g., USDA MyPlate accuracy). Explicitly, is the dosage and type of content implementation directly associated with student’s gain in knowledge and the ability to successfully identify the following: (1) food from each of the five food groups, (2) healthy plate that includes all recommended food groups, (3) food origins, (4) four activities that increase heart rate, and (5) sleep, healthy plate, and physical activity as behaviors needed to keep our body healthy. Researchers utilized the information from the teacher usage checklist to determine dosage and content implementation of lessons. Pre- and post-assessments were randomly conducted on 252 pre-kindergarten (17.9%) and kindergarten (82.1%) students (M age = 5.02) whose parents had provided consent. Pearson correlations identified strong, positive correlations regarding implementation across the curriculum and within the domains and themes. A series of One-way ANOVAs were conducted, identifying a significance in outcomes of at least one child assessment and in both health themes (i.e., nutrition, physical activity). However, overall findings indicate that curriculum dosage alone was not related to changes in child health knowledge. Further testing did not show a significant difference in association between changes in child knowledge when controlling for time between pre- and post-assessments. Results suggest the effectiveness of the WannaBee Healthy? curriculum is not based on curriculum alone.

Purpose: Shared mental models (SMMs) represent commonly held understandings of task and team related knowledge within a team. Thought to facilitate implicit and adaptive coordination without the need for explicit communication, the construct has been thoroughly studied in non-health care settings. There has been increasing interest in the topic in the healthcare setting, but recent reviews have found that the construct is poorly defined and has significant heterogeneity in how it is measured (Floren et al., 2018). We conducted a scoping review examining the construct of SMMs in medical teams within the acute care setting. Method: Following the Arksey and O’Malley (2005) framework, five data bases were searched: Medline, CINAHL, PsychInfo, Web of Science, and Embase. Eligible studies examined SMMs in the context of medical teamwork in the acute care setting. Definitions, methods, and general study characteristics were examined. Results: Of the 1397 articles retrieved, 25 met eligibility criteria. The studies encompassed a variety of areas of clinical practice. There was no common definition for SMMs across the studies examined. The majority of studies (20/25) used quantitative methods with surveys, questionnaires, and observation being the most common. Conclusions: The construct of the SMM is poorly defined in the setting of acute care medical teams. Although many standard types of SMM measurement exist, few of the studies used these common methods. The lack of direct measurement of SMMs, especially in the case of observation, questions the validity of these studies. We propose a definition for SMMs in this context and a path forward for studying SMM in the acute care setting. / Thesis / Master of Science (MSc) / Health care is a team sport and as health care systems become more complex, teamwork becomes increasingly important. However, a team of experts does not make an expert team and highly effective teams possess a particular set of characteristics that allow them to perform high quality care. One characteristic that is receiving an increasing amount of attention is the Shared Mental Model. The purpose of this study was to examine what is already known about these shared mental models in the context of acute care medical teams. This study will act as a launching point for future research exploring how teams think and how it impacts the quality of care they can provide.

<p>Nyckelord: hälsofrämjande, hälsoutvecklare, folkhälsovetenskap, utbildning, arbetsmarknad, upplevelser</p><p>Titel: ”Så mycket mer än bara morötter och joggingdress…” En kvalitativ studie som belyser hur utexaminerade hälsoutvecklare vid Örebro Universitet upplevde sin utbildning och mötet med arbetsmarknaden.</p><p>Bakgrund: Det folkhälsovetenskapliga arbetsfältet är en relativt ny vetenskaplig disciplin. Antalet studier som belyser folkhälsovetarnas villkor på arbetsmarknaden är få och merparten av dessa är av kvantitativ art.</p><p>Syfte: Syftet med denna studie var att belysa hur hälsoutvecklare vid Örebro Universitet som utexaminerats mellan åren 2004-2007 upplevde sin 3-åriga utbildning på Hälsoutvecklarprogrammet samt deras upplevelser av mötet med arbetsmarknadens villkor.</p><p>Frågeställningar: Vilka upplevelser har hälsoutvecklare av mötet med arbetsmarknaden? Vilka upplevelser har hälsoutvecklare av bemötandet av det hälsofrämjande perspektivet på arbetsmarknaden? Vilka upplevelser har hälsoutvecklare av sin utbildning?</p><p>Metod: För att hitta nyanser och ett ökat djup i forskningsfrågan genomfördes kvalitativa intervjuer med respondenter från Hälsoutvecklarprogrammet som examinerats mellan 2004-2007. Intervjuerna transkriberades och därefter genomfördes en innehållsanalys där teman, kategorier och subkategorier utformades.</p><p>Resultat: Respondenterna upplever att en bred utbildning försvårar möjligheten att professionalisera sig på arbetsmarknaden där det finns en del legitimitetssvårigheter. Förklaringen till legitimitetssvårigheterna sammankopplas med respondenternas känsla av att vara missuppfattad, känna en låg status, en känsla av okunskap utan någon spetskompetens samt ett arbeta med ett svårgenomslaget hälsofrämjande perspektiv. För att få arbete inom det hälsofrämjande arbetsområdet behöver hälsoutvecklaren nätverka med andra människor. Nyckelfaktorerna är att ha många kontakter och att vara utåtriktad och driven för att kunna få arbete i en svår bransch där det är tuff konkurrens om få arbeten. Alla respondenter trivs i sitt arbete vilket förklaras i att de känner att de arbetar med betydelsefulla uppgifter, att de har ett bra arbetsklimat samt att de bär med sig en utbildningsstolthet.</p><p>Slutsatser: Det skulle finnas fördelar med att återinföra mentorskap, utveckla praktiken, verklighetsanpassa examinationsuppgifterna och att införa mer hälsoekonomi i utbildningen. Detta för att öka hälsoutvecklarstudenternas anställningsbarhet samt för att få en ännu mer konkurrenskraftig utbildning vid Örebro Universitet.</p> / <p>Keyword: health promotion, public health worker, public health science, education, labour market, experiences</p><p>Title: “So much more than just carrots and training clothes..” A qualitative study that examines how graduated public health workers at the University of Örebro experienced their education and the conditions of the labour market.</p><p>Background: The labour market of public health workers is a rather new discipline. The numbers of studies that examine the conditions of the labour market for examined public health workers are few and most of them have a quantitative approach.</p><p>Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine how graduated public health workers at the University of Örebro, between the years of 2004 and 2007, experienced their three-year education and the conditions of the labour market.</p><p>Method: In an attempt to obtain an in-depth and more profound understanding, qualitative method was required and therefore, interviews with graduated public health workers were performed. The interviewes were transcribed, and followed by a content analysis where the data were divided into different patterns forming themes, categories and sub categories.</p><p>Result: The respondents experienced a wide and broad education complicates the ability to be more professional in the labour market, where there tend to be difficulties for the respondents to be legitimated. These experiences connect with the respondents feelings of being misunderstood, not having a high-status profession job, having a feeling of poor knowledge and working with the health promotion perspective which tent to have a low impact. To get a job in the health promoting working field after the education the public health workers need to have a wide network with people in the working field. The key factors for an employment is to have many and good social contacts and to be outgoing and to be the prime mover. All of the respondents´ satisfaction by their occupation could be explained by them having feelings about important tasks and assignments. A good working climate and the feeling of being proud of their education are also factors that explain the job satisfaction.</p><p>Conclusion: The education of public health would benefit from reintroducing mentorship and developing the job practice experience during the studies. Other benefits would be to adapt and adjust the examinations of diffrent modules to be more linked to the labour markets requirement, and to introduce more health economics in the education. This, in return would increase the numbers of employments of public health workers and also create an even more competitive education of public health at the University of Örebro.</p>

<p>Syfte och frågeställningar</p><p>Syftet med denna studie är att undersöka om det går att påverka ungdomars fysiska prestation med hjälp av positiv feedback. De olika frågeställningarna som utvecklats utifrån detta syfte ämnar ta reda på skillnaden i resultaten för de tester utförda med, respektive utan positiv feedback. Andra variabler som skillnad i slutpuls, om den positiva feedbacken gör större inverkan vid statiska styrkeövningar jämfört med dynamiska, undersöks också.</p><p>Metod</p><p>För att kunna besvara frågeställningarna har en experimentell crossover designad studie genomförts på en grupp bestående av 21 stycken idrottsaktiva pojkar födda 1994. De tester som genomfördes var Tid till utmattning på löpband, Belly-back-, Armhang-, och ett Handgriptest. Ett förtest genomfördes med alla försökspersoner, vid det tillfället fick deltagarna möjlighet att prova testerna. Därefter delades ungdomarna in i två grupper, Grupp A och Grupp B. Grupp A mottog feedback vid första tillfället men inte vid andra. Grupp B mottog ingen feedback vid första tillfället men däremot vid det andra tillfället. Försökspersonerna visste inte om syftet med studien under studiens gång. Testresultaten bearbetades sedan i SPSS 15.0 för windows.</p><p>Resultat</p><p>Resultaten visar i samtliga fall förutom vid testen för handgrip på en signifikant förbättring i testresultat vid de tester som genomfördes med positiv feedback. Störst förbättring var det vid de övningar som testade statisk uthållig styrka (Belly-back och Armhang), den största procentuella förbättringen uppmättes i Armhang (35%) och den största skillnaden i tid uppmättes i Belly-back (31,0 s). Ingen signifikant skillnad kunde ses mellan Grupp A och Grupp B.</p><p>Slutsats</p><p>Denna studie påvisar liksom tidigare forskning att positiv feedback kan förbättra resultatet vid fysiskt arbete. En intressant del av arbetet är att effekten av den positiva feedbacken var mycket större vid statsikt arbete än vid dynamiskt arbete. Det har dock inte bedrivits mycket forskning på ungdomar inom detta område. Det skulle vara intressant att vidareutveckla denna typ av studie på en större population där man även kan kartlägga ungdomarnas bakgrund för att kunna koppla mottagandet av feedback till en viss personlighetstyp.</p> / <p>Aim</p><p>The aim in this study is to examine if it is possible to affect the physical performance in adolescence with positive feedback. The different questions asked on the basis of this aim, is intended to explore the difference in the results for the tests made with, respectively without positive feedback. Other objects, like difference in end pulse, if the positive feedback has a larger effect when performing statical strenght compared to dynamic strenght, is also examined. B.F Skinners theories of removemet of the positiv feedback is tested.</p><p>Method</p><p>To answer the questions asked, a exprementell cross-over designed study was carried out on a group of 21 boys born in 1994, acitve in sports. The tests made in the study were Time to exhaution on threadmill, Belly-Back, Armhang, and Handgrip. A pretest was exucuted with all subjects, on that occasion the subjects had the opportunity to try all tests they later would perform. Thereafter the adolescence were divided into two groups, Group A and Group B. Group A recieved feedback in the first session but not in the second one. Group B did not recieve feedback in the first test session, instead they recieved it in the second session. The subjects did not know the purpose with the study during the time for the study.</p><p>Results</p><p>In all the tests excluding the one for handstrenght, the results shows a significant improvement in the tests performed with positive feedback. The largest improvements were seen in the tests for static endurance strenght (Belly-back and Armhang), the largest difference in percent was seen in the Armhang test (35%) and the largest difference in time was seen in the Belly-back test (31,0 s). No significant difference could be seen when Group A and B were compared.</p><p>Conclusions</p><p>This study indicates, like the previous research, that positive feedback may improve the results in physical performence. An interesting part of this work is the observation of the larger effect of the positive feedback when performing static endurance strenght compared to tests for dynamic endurance. Alltough, the research on adolescence in this particular topic is not widespread. It would be highly interesting to develope this kind of study on a larger population and describe the background for the subjects to better find out how their different personalitys effect their response to the positive feedback.</p>

Syfte och frågeställningar Syftet med denna studie är att undersöka om det går att påverka ungdomars fysiska prestation med hjälp av positiv feedback. De olika frågeställningarna som utvecklats utifrån detta syfte ämnar ta reda på skillnaden i resultaten för de tester utförda med, respektive utan positiv feedback. Andra variabler som skillnad i slutpuls, om den positiva feedbacken gör större inverkan vid statiska styrkeövningar jämfört med dynamiska, undersöks också. Metod För att kunna besvara frågeställningarna har en experimentell crossover designad studie genomförts på en grupp bestående av 21 stycken idrottsaktiva pojkar födda 1994. De tester som genomfördes var Tid till utmattning på löpband, Belly-back-, Armhang-, och ett Handgriptest. Ett förtest genomfördes med alla försökspersoner, vid det tillfället fick deltagarna möjlighet att prova testerna. Därefter delades ungdomarna in i två grupper, Grupp A och Grupp B. Grupp A mottog feedback vid första tillfället men inte vid andra. Grupp B mottog ingen feedback vid första tillfället men däremot vid det andra tillfället. Försökspersonerna visste inte om syftet med studien under studiens gång. Testresultaten bearbetades sedan i SPSS 15.0 för windows. Resultat Resultaten visar i samtliga fall förutom vid testen för handgrip på en signifikant förbättring i testresultat vid de tester som genomfördes med positiv feedback. Störst förbättring var det vid de övningar som testade statisk uthållig styrka (Belly-back och Armhang), den största procentuella förbättringen uppmättes i Armhang (35%) och den största skillnaden i tid uppmättes i Belly-back (31,0 s). Ingen signifikant skillnad kunde ses mellan Grupp A och Grupp B. Slutsats Denna studie påvisar liksom tidigare forskning att positiv feedback kan förbättra resultatet vid fysiskt arbete. En intressant del av arbetet är att effekten av den positiva feedbacken var mycket större vid statsikt arbete än vid dynamiskt arbete. Det har dock inte bedrivits mycket forskning på ungdomar inom detta område. Det skulle vara intressant att vidareutveckla denna typ av studie på en större population där man även kan kartlägga ungdomarnas bakgrund för att kunna koppla mottagandet av feedback till en viss personlighetstyp. / Aim The aim in this study is to examine if it is possible to affect the physical performance in adolescence with positive feedback. The different questions asked on the basis of this aim, is intended to explore the difference in the results for the tests made with, respectively without positive feedback. Other objects, like difference in end pulse, if the positive feedback has a larger effect when performing statical strenght compared to dynamic strenght, is also examined. B.F Skinners theories of removemet of the positiv feedback is tested. Method To answer the questions asked, a exprementell cross-over designed study was carried out on a group of 21 boys born in 1994, acitve in sports. The tests made in the study were Time to exhaution on threadmill, Belly-Back, Armhang, and Handgrip. A pretest was exucuted with all subjects, on that occasion the subjects had the opportunity to try all tests they later would perform. Thereafter the adolescence were divided into two groups, Group A and Group B. Group A recieved feedback in the first session but not in the second one. Group B did not recieve feedback in the first test session, instead they recieved it in the second session. The subjects did not know the purpose with the study during the time for the study. Results In all the tests excluding the one for handstrenght, the results shows a significant improvement in the tests performed with positive feedback. The largest improvements were seen in the tests for static endurance strenght (Belly-back and Armhang), the largest difference in percent was seen in the Armhang test (35%) and the largest difference in time was seen in the Belly-back test (31,0 s). No significant difference could be seen when Group A and B were compared. Conclusions This study indicates, like the previous research, that positive feedback may improve the results in physical performence. An interesting part of this work is the observation of the larger effect of the positive feedback when performing static endurance strenght compared to tests for dynamic endurance. Alltough, the research on adolescence in this particular topic is not widespread. It would be highly interesting to develope this kind of study on a larger population and describe the background for the subjects to better find out how their different personalitys effect their response to the positive feedback.

Background: People in Cameroon are experiencing a dietary transition characterized by changing from traditional food habits to increased intake of highly processed sweet and fatty food. The rapid change in food pattern combined with an increased sedentary lifestyle has resulted in a rather high prevalence of obesity, hypertension, cardiovascular diseases and type 2 diabetes. Nutritional intake is important during adolescence for growth spurt, health, cognitive development and performance in school. Objective: The aim of this thesis was to assess dietary intake, anthropometry and physical activity of adolescents according to sex and socioeconomic status (SES) and to investigate food perceptions of adolescents living in urban and rural areas of Cameroon. Methods: Girls and boys, 12-16 years of age, were randomly selected from schools in urban and rural areas. Food frequency questionnaire, 24-hour dietary and physical activity recalls, anthropometric measurements, qualitative interviews and a background questionnaire were used for data collection. Results: The proportion of overweight was three times higher in girls (14%) compared to boys (4%). Stunting and underweight were more common among boys (15% and 6%) than girls (5% and 1%). The prevalence of stunting was two times higher among the urban adolescents with low SES (12%) compared to those with high SES (5%). The rural adolescents had the highest proportion of stunting but more muscle that the urban adolescents. The rural adolescents ate in order to live and to maintain health. Urban adolescents with low SES ate in order to maintain health, while those with high SES ate for pleasure. More than 30% of the adolescents skipped breakfast in the urban area. Urban adolescents with high SES and girls reported a more frequent consumption of in-between meals and most food groups compared to the rural adolescents, boys and those with low SES. Over 55% of the adolescents had a protein intake below 10% of the energy (E%). Twenty-six percent of the adolescents had fat intake below 25 E%, and 25% had fat intake above 35 E%. A large proportion of the adolescents had an intake of micronutrients below the estimated average recommendation. Boys and the adolescents with low SES reported a higher energy expenditure and physical activity level than girls and the adolescents with high SES, respectively. Both under- and over-reporting of energy intake were common among the adolescents. Conclusions: The present study showed that nutrient inadequacy, stunting, underweight, as well as overweight and obesity were common among the adolescents in Cameroon. Therefore an intervention program targeting both under- and overnutrition among school adolescents is needed. Sex and socioeconomic differences also need to be considered.

<p>Hälsosamma levnadsvanor är en viktig förutsättning för att skapa en positiv hälsoutveckling och kostvanor, fysisk aktivitet och stress är faktorer som påverkar hälsan. Till följd av den senare tidens förändringar i samhället har befolkningens levnadsvanor förändrats till en mer ohälsosam kost, fysisk inaktivitet, och stressen har ökat. De förändrade levnadsvanorna har påverkat folkhälsan, och att satsa på dessa områden i folkhälsoarbetet kan ge betydelsefulla hälsovinster. Landstinget Västmanland driver ett projekt med syftet att främja hälsosamma levnadsvanor. I projektet ingår ”Kom i form gruppen” som är en gruppverksamhet som inriktas på kost, fysisk aktivitet och stress. Syftet var att undersöka deltagarnas upplevelser av deltagandet i ”Kom i form gruppen” och om deltagandet har påverkat deras levnadsvanor. För att besvara syftet användes en kvalitativ metod med intervjuer. Resultatet visar att innehållet på träffarna inte har gett någon ny kunskap. Deltagandet har gett medvetenhet och motivation och upplevelsen om kostvanor har påverkats varierar mellan deltagarna. Deltagarnas motionsvanor har påverkats genom regelbundna motionstillfällen och vardagsmotion. Påverkan på stress har inte skett men de försöker att tänka på att stressa mindre. Tidsbrist och stress upplevs dock som ett hinder för att leva hälsosamt.</p> / <p>Healthy lifestyles are an important condition for creating a positive health and dietary habits, physical activity and stress are factors that affect health. As a result of recent changes in society people's lifestyles have changes through unhealthy diet, physical inactivity, and stress has increased. Changing lifestyles have affected public health, and to invest in these areas in public health work can provide significant health benefits. Västmanland County Council operates a project to promote healthy behavior. The project includes "Kom i form gruppen" which is a group that focuses on nutrition, physical activity and stress. The aim was to investigate participants' experiences of participation in "Kom i form gruppen" and if the participation has affected their lifestyles. To answer the purpose, a qualitative approach with interviews used. The result shows that the content of the meetings has not identified any new knowledge. Participation has provided awareness and motivation and appreciation of food habits have been affected varied between participants. The participants' exercise habits have been affected by regular exercise occasions and everyday physical activity. Effect of stress has not been made, but they try to think about to rush less. Lack of time and stress, however, perceived as an impediment to healthy living.</p>

<p>Delaktighet och inflytande är en grundförutsättning för folkhälsa där gemenskap, sociala relationer och socialt kapital är viktigt för en individs välmående. Det är viktigt för att individer ska känna sammanhang och uppleva att de kan påverka de egna livsvillkoren. Ungdomar har rätt att på samma sätt som vuxna delge sina åsikter i ett demokratiskt samhälle. Inflytandeforum för ungdomar anses vara ett medel för att säkerställa att ungdomars perspektiv uppmärksammas. Syftet med studien var att undersöka hur ungdomar i ett specifikt ungdomsråd upplever delaktighet och inflytande, i utveckling av kommunal verksamhet utifrån ett hälsofrämjade perspektiv. En kvalitativ metod valdes, där två gruppintervjuer genomfördes med ungdomsrådets styrelsemedlemmar. Studien visade att ungdomar upplever delaktighet och inflytande som delar i demokrati och att det är viktig för dem, då det innebär möjlighet att göra sin röst hörd. Ungdomarna ansåg att de via ungdomsrådet har möjlighet att påverka den kommunala verksamheten i viss mån. I de fall de inte kan påverka, är det viktigt att få möjlighet att vara delaktiga i diskussionen. Ungdomsrådet bidrar till att öka individers egenmakt, självkänsla och sociala nätverk samt att verkar för att erbjuda något som tilltalar samtliga ungdomar i kommunen.</p> / <p>Participation and influence are prerequisites for public health, in which community spirit, social relationships and social capital are important for an individual's wellbeing. It is important so that individuals can feel a sense of context and power to influence their own living conditions. Adolescents are entitled, in the same manner as adults, to share their views in a democratic society. Adolescent organizations, which aim to empower young people, are considered as a means of ensuring that their perspectives are observed. The purpose of this study was to examine how adolescents in a specific youth council experience participation and influence in the development of municipal activities from a health promotion perspective. A qualitative method was chosen, in which two group interviews were conducted with Youth Council Board members. The study showed that young people perceive participation and power sharing in democracy and that it is important for them because it means the opportunity to make their voices heard. The adolescents felt that they through the Youth Council have the opportunity to influence the development of municipal activities to some extent. In case they are not being able to influence it is important do have the opportunity to participate in the discussion. The youth council helps to enhance individual empowerment, self-esteem and social networks, as well as promoting the provision of something that appeals to all young people in the municipality.</p>