Jennifer Nee Loh, who recently completed her Community Psychology MA dissertation project about Hidden Youth in Singapore, has co-compiled a summary with policy recommendations.
The summary and policy recommendations were handed to the Senior Parliamentary Secretary (SPS) of the Ministry of Social and Family Development in November at an annual fundraiser for Playeum where they were the guest of honour. Jennifer is co-founder of Playeum, a Singapore based organisation that champions children’s voices and rights.
Jennifer said: “My colleagues handed him a summary as well as the full print out of my report as it supports our work, which includes advocating for more child participation in Singapore.
“I have been invited to a dialogue with the SPS. I’m also planning on submitting a piece to the forum page of the main English newspaper in Singapore, the Straits Times.”
Jennifer said about her dissertation project: “Youth mental health is a growing problem in the world, and this phenomenon is one expression of the distress young people feel.
“In Singapore, it is only getting some attention in social work in past few years and very little research has been done on the Hidden Youth phenomenon, and much of the knowledge and interventions is based on research done in places like Japan and Hong Kong. I wanted to contribute towards growing our understanding of the phenomenon in the local context.”
You can learn more about Hidden Youth in this documentary – English subtitles are available.
On studying the MA at Brighton Jennifer said: “It’s helped deepen my systems thinking and emphasised ecological approaches, which are imperative to understanding and addressing social issues. This will help me to facilitate and design better for more sustainable and just solutions.
“I’ve come away with more compassion and appreciation for people and groups within our systems and the roles we play, and am even more driven now to help elevate the marginalised and bridge different groups and individuals in society for change.”
Jennifer chats about the Community Psychology MA in this short film:
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