My PhD research investigates how the urban living environment shapes the mental well-being of children and young people over time. By leveraging longitudinal data sources, I examine associations between various neighborhood characteristics (such as green space, safety, socioeconomic conditions, access to facilities, the social environment) and mental well-being trajectories across youth.

As a starting point, I am conducting a scoping review to map the existing longitudinal evidence on urban neighborhood characteristics and youth mental well-being. I am currently preparing an Ecological Momentary Assessment (EMA) study to examine real-time associations between the urban environment and momentary well-being, capturing how young people's experiences of their environment fluctuate as they move through the city in daily life. In this first phase of my PhD, I'm exploring participatory approaches to involve young people more directly in shaping research priorities. My PhD is a collaboration between UvA and the City of Amsterdam, and lives at the intersection of developmental psychology, epidemiology, urban studies, and public health, with the aim of identifying concrete, actionable levers for municipal policy to make cities more supportive of youth mental health.

Research expertise

• urban mental health
• mental well-being
• happiness
• adolescents
• young adults

Other links

• Centre for Urban Mental Health
• Programme group Developmental Psychology - PhD Candidates
• Addiction Development and Psychopathology Lab

Research methods

• Systematic scoping review (NIRO-SR)
• Longitudinal data analysis
• Ecological Momentary Assessment (EMA)
• Survey research
• Qualitative research
• Participatory research

Current research projects

• Scoping review
  Systematic scoping review (following NIRO-SR protocol) mapping longitudinal evidence on urban neighborhood characteristics and youth mental well-being, using ASReview for screening. Preregistration here.
• Evaluation of student mental health workshops
  Assessed change in mental health literacy following peer-led mental health workshops for university students in collaboration with GGD Amsterdam, using a single-group pretest-posttest design with follow-up and qualitative interviewing.
• Your Emotional City (EMA study)
  Upcoming Ecological Momentary Assessment study in Amsterdam capturing real-time associations between the urban environment and youth's momentary well-being.
• Longitudinal analyses on the Amsterdam-Born Children and their Development Cohort data
  Longitudinal analysis of the ABCD cohort examining how various neighborhood characteristics relate to children's and adolescents' mental well-being trajectories over time.
• Participatory research
  Engaging youth directly by approaching them in their everyday environments (schools, neighborhoods, hangout spots), to gauge research priorities and ground findings in lived experience.

Current cooperation

• City of Amsterdam
• GGD Amsterdam
• Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin

RPA

• Centre for Urban Mental Health