CHAT-YOUTH - Crisis Help and Assistance for youth during challenging Times

OVERVIEW
HELSINKI MEETING
NETWORKING AND COMMUNITY OF PRACTICE MEETINGS
PAST EVENTS
FUNDING AND PARTNERS

OVERVIEW

Youth undergo personal and external crises in the current time of changes. Young people seek support and mental help online. There are different kinds of online counselling chat services (OCCS) that aim to support the well-being of young people. CHAT-YOUTH will produce information and facilitate stakeholders to information exchange and ethical reflection to improve the quality of starting and ongoing non-profit OCCS and to capacitate youth work in Europe.

We collect and analyse data about characteristics and good practices of OCCS that support youth (<30) to overcome crisis with human help. In-depth analyses of topics and dialogues are conducted. The research results will be shared and disseminated through participatory activities with European stakeholders and further developed into practical tools. The aim is to facilitate networking that will strengthen the links between research, practice and policy.

CHAT-YOUTH will produce knowledge about OCCS that will help to develop and evaluate ongoing and start new OCCS. A special focus will be on vulnerable groups, including youth from Ukraine. Networking will bring European stakeholders together to share experiences and to discuss quality as well as ethical issues, also after the end of the project.

NETWORKING AND COMMUNITY OF PRACTICE MEETINGS

We focus on building a network of chat-related stakeholders, be it counselors, youth themselves, researchers or board members of chat-organizations. With this growing network we plan to organize six Community of Practice meetings, in which we want to enable European exchange of information about best practices and shortcomings in online chat counseling services for youth. The first Community of Practice meetings have been succesful and left us with much more to talk about.

The future CoP meetings are planned on:

Tuesday February 11th, 2025 (11-12u30 CET) register HERE
Tuesday June 17th, 2025 (11-12u30 CET)
Tuesday September 16th, 2025 (11-12u30 CET).

Next to these CoP meetings we will also organize webinars on f.e. training of counselors. Specific dates are not picked yet, but the timeframes in which they will happen are listed below. Finally, we will also organize a Stakeholder symposium in Ghent (Belgium) on the 22^nd and 23th of May in 2025.

Webinar 1: 14th of January (15u – 17u CET): Artificial Intelligence
Webinar 2: May 2025 (parallel with symposium in Ghent, Belgium)
Stakeholder symposium: 22-23 May 2025
Webinar 3: November/December 2025

If you wish to learn more about the CoPs or the webinars, feel free to contact Elke Denayer (elke.denayer@ugent.be) with any questions or suggestions.

Dissemination aims to contribute to improving OCCS, and eventually support youth in need as well as youth work, research and policy making.

PAST EVENTS

Helsinki CHAT-YOUTH meeting

Helsinki CHAT-YOUTH meeting took place on Thursday 22.8.2024 at Tieteiden talo. During the day our multinational CHAT-YOUTH consortium shared research results and discussed the best practices for online councelling chat services (OCCS) for children and young people. We were joined by representatives from various councelling chat services and other experts on youth research and we were able to share observations from multiple chat platforms as well as the newest research findings on the topic. The theme of the meeting was Research and Practice.

Kick-off meeting for CHAT-YOUTH partners and experts
The hybrid kick-off meeting was arranged on Thursday the 25th of January 2024 in Madrid, Spain.

CHAT-YOUTH arranged a thematic working group called Do chat services for youth build hope? at the XXII Annual Conference of Youth Studies on 8–9th November 2023 in Helsinki, Finland.

NYRIS 16th Nordic Youth Research Symposium June 12-14th, 2024, Tampere, Finland. CHAT-YOUT arranged the thematic working group number 11. CHAT-services as Crisis help and Assistance for youth during challenging Times.

Past Community of Practice meetings:

The first Community of Practice meeting on the 14th of March 2024 was about exchanging information and expertise. We gave a short update about the CHAT-YOUTH project and heard a presentation about a Finnish chat service.
The second Community of Practice meeting on the 18th of June 2024 was about artificial intelligence and how artificial intelligence can be used in chat services. Before we heard a presentation about AI, we gave a short update about the project. During the discussions participant shared their ideas and thoughts about using AI in the chat services.
The third Community of Practice meeting on the 1st of October 2024 was about suicidality as a phenomenon in the OCCS’s and how counselors should approach the topic.

Summary of the Third Community of Practice meeting

CH@T-YOUTH: Crisis help through chat
The Community of Practice group continues to grow, with participants from diverse countries, including Germany, the Netherlands, Portugal, Malta, Spain, and Bulgaria. This session took the form of an intervision and featured Marie Van Der Cam from SAM vzw, who shared insights on managing crisis conversations involving suicidal ideation across various national contexts.
Professor Alexis Dewaele from Ghent University gave a presentation on the state of the art on suicide research and discussed the benefits of chat counseling for youth in crisis. Chat services enhance accessibility and anonymity, making it easier for young people to discuss sensitive issues like mental health or suicidal thoughts. The absence of non-verbal cues encourages deeper focus on content, while writing can have therapeutic effects. Chat counseling also gives clients autonomy to control the pace. Combining chat services with traditional therapy (blended care) improves overall support and flexibility for youth in crisis.

Marie Van Der Cam led a discussion on handling suicide in chat conversations. During breakout rooms, participants shared their approaches when suicidal ideation becomes apparent, revealing diverse strategies:
• Establishing a safe space: Creating a supportive environment and expressing genuine concern for the client.
• Risk assessment: Evaluating the severity of the client’s suicidal thoughts and depressive feelings to understand risk levels.
• Detecting and addressing signals: Encouraging counselors to express suspicion and make assessments when warning signs are observed.
• Exploring meaning: Understanding the client’s reasons for their thoughts and their ambivalence regarding their situation.
• Positive reinforcement: Acknowledging the bravery it takes for clients to discuss suicidal thoughts, helping build rapport.
• Permission for third-party contact: Seeking the client’s consent to involve emergency services or family members when necessary.
• Staying calm: Emphasizing the importance of counselors remaining calm and focused during conversations to provide a stable support environment.
• Protocol adherence: Following established protocols to ensure consistent handling of sensitive situations, especially when a client’s life is at risk.

Feedback from the breakout rooms revealed several insights. Participants noted similarities in approaches, with risk assessment and safety planning as common steps. However, differences emerged regarding timelines and protocols for contacting emergency services. Support for counselors was emphasized through regular debriefings and professional networks, highlighting the importance of preparation and clear protocols

picture of the people attending the kick off meeting in Madrid

FUNDING AND PARTNERS

ERASMUS+ KA220-YOU – Cooperation partnerships in youth.

Alexis Dewaele, Lien Goossens and Elke Denayer (1/2024 -), Universiteit Gent, Belgium
Maria Cabello Salmerón, Irati Higuera Lozano (3/2024 -) and Ana Mateos Ramirez (6 – 7/2024 -) La Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Spain
Katalin Felvinczi, Zsuza Kaló and Mónika Rényi (1/2024 -), Eötvös Loránd University, Hungary
Tuuli Pitkänen, Essi Holopainen (9/2023 – 5/2024), Virvatuli Uusimäki (1 – 8/2024) and Siiri Soininvaara (8/2024 -), Finnish Youth Research Society, Finland