Uncommon Grace The Autobiography of Isaac Folorunso
Bouman lubjuhn iw1
1. Communication for Social Change
The Secret of the Positive Exception:
The Positive Deviance strategy
Dr. Martine Bouman & Dr. Sarah Lubjuhn
Center for Media & Health
July 2nd 2014, European Conference on Positive Psychology
Communication for Social Change
2. What we do
Communication for Social Change
The Center for Media & Health empowers
people to live a more healthy and
sustainable lifestyle, through the use of
entertainment media, storytelling and
innovative communication methods.
European Conference on Positive Psychology July 2nd 2014
6. Positive Deviance (PD) strategy
Communication for Social Change
European Conference on Positive Psychology July 2nd 2014
Positive Deviance
7. When to use PD
Communication for Social Change
• The problem is not exclusively technical and
requires behavioral or/and social change.
• The problem is “intractable”—other solutions
haven’t worked.
• There is support and local leadership
commitment to address the issue.
European Conference on Positive Psychology July 2nd 2014
8. Key elements of PD
Communication for Social Change
• Community based
• “You are more likely to act your way into a
new way of thinking than to think your
way into a new way of acting.”
• Four basic steps: define, determine,
discover and design (four D’s)
European Conference on Positive Psychology July 2nd 2014
10. PD question
Communication for Social Change
Are there VMBO-B and VMBO-T schools in Rotterdam
• that have more than 120 students,
• and have more than 50% students with a migrant
background,
• and are situated in a deprived neighborhood,
• and are not part of the healthy schools program or do
not have access to any other special resources
• who are highly mental resilient (i.e. score of
10 or less on the SDQ data scale) against all odds?
European Conference on Positive Psychology July 2nd 2014
11. Strenghen and Difficulties
Questionnaire (SDQ): Mental Health
Communication for Social Change
European Conference on Positive Psychology July 2nd 2014
• Youth Health Monitor Rijnmond
• Questions, scores: 0,1,2
(agree, slight agree, disagree)
• Four Elements:
Emotional problems
Behavioral problems
Peer problems
Prosocial behaviour
12. Strenghen and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) data
Communication for Social Change
European Conference on Positive Psychology July 2nd 2014
• 52 VMBO schools in Rotterdam
• Data: 2009/2010 and 2010/11
• Extra check data: 2011/2012
13. SDQ Scores
VMBO schools in Rotterdam – Mean Value
Communication for Social Change
PD school
selection
European Conference on Positive Psychology July 2nd 2014
14. Positive Deviance schools
Communication for Social Change
• School 1: Lucia Petrus
SDQ scores: 9 (2009/2010) and 11 (2010/11); 99% migrant
background, SI=5,9 (vulnerable), 450 students, no extra resources
• School 2: Mavo Delfshaven
SDQ scores: 9 (2009/2010) and 7 (2010/11); 98% migrant
background; SI=5,1 (vulnerable), 160 students, no extra resources
• School 3: Libanon Lyceum
SDQ scores: 10 (2009/2010) and 8 (2010/11); 74% migrant
background; SI=5,4 (vulnerable); 1150 students, no extra resources
European Conference on Positive Psychology July 2nd 2014
15. Meetings at PD schools
Communication for Social Change
European Conference on Positive Psychology July 2nd 2014
16. Welcome at the door
Communication for Social Change
“During the short breaks, or lunch
breaks, I am always looking around to
see if there is maybe a face I do not
know. 450 faces… I can remember a
lot, I have sort of a photographical
memory (laughs)”
Concierge, Lucia Petrus Mavo “I welcome the students each morning
when they come in. Many of them greet
me. Others I know are not a morning
person, just like my wife.”
Concierge, Mavo Delfshaven
European Conference on Positive Psychology July 2nd 2014
17. Personal approach
Communication for Social Change
European Conference on Positive Psychology July 2nd 2014
Staff members congratulate students (Libanon Lyceum and Lucia Petrus)
18. Language Posters
Communication for Social Change
“Every week the students learn new words. And
every week we have a new language poster. This is
important for us. We have a teacher at school who
is responsible for the posters. I greet her every
Friday afternoon, when she is turning around the
posters.”
Care coordinator, Lucia Petrus
European Conference on Positive Psychology July 2nd 2014
19. Atmosphere in the classroom
Communication for Social Change
European Conference on Positive Psychology July 2nd 2014
Photo’s taken at Lucia Petrus
20. Doors open
Communication for Social Change
European Conference on Positive Psychology July 2nd 2014
Photo’s taken at Lucia Petrus
21. A Community where “we are there for each other”
Communication for Social Change
“We see each other a bit like a big family.
I mean we often times spend more time
together than with our partners at home”
“I allow the student to store his
medication in my desk. Every day at noon
he comes to my office. You know, before
storing it here, he often times forgot to
take his medication.”
Concierge Mavo Delfshaven
Office of the concierge
European Conference on Positive Psychology July 2nd 2014
22. Electronic monitoring system Magister
Communication for Social Change
European Conference on Positive Psychology July 2nd 2014
23. Reciprocal Trust and Respect
Communication for Social Change
The social worker informs and shows students which private and
confidential information about him/her is accessible to other
staff members of the school in the electronic monitoring school
system ‘Magister’. This helps the social worker to build a trusting
relationship with the student (LP).
Social worker at Lucia Petrus showing one of the researchers how the Magister System works
European Conference on Positive Psychology July 2nd 2014
24. Fostering Responsibility
Communication for Social Change
European Conference on Positive Psychology July 2nd 2014
Students at Lucia Petrus and Mavo Delfshaven
Clear and
transparent
structures and
rules
25. Taking responsibility and being proactive
Communication for Social Change
European Conference on Positive Psychology July 2nd 2014
Students at Libanon Lyceum
• Registration of students who
are sick while having a
school test (LL)
• Specific staff members for
staying in contact with
parents (MD)
Breakfast meeting with mothers at Mavo Delfshaven
26. Study career tutors
Communication for Social Change
European Conference on Positive Psychology July 2nd 2014
The study career tutor at work, getting in contact with parents (Mavo Delfshaven)
27. Parents
Communication for Social Change
European Conference on Positive Psychology July 2nd 2014
“The language issue is a problem for me when having contact with the
school. There was a time when I did not speak Dutch at all. But I tried to
change this. Now my Dutch is much better, but I still feel ashamed when I
speak in public. The breakfast meetings enable me to train my Dutch in a
safe environment. And I also receive language support from the school
career tutors, if I need it. They speak either Moroccan or Turkish. That’s
great.”
Mother with a Moroccan background
Breakfast meeting with mothers at Mavo Delfshaven
28. Positive reinforcement
Communication for Social Change
European Conference on Positive Psychology July 2nd 2014
Social Matrix created by the social worker at Lucia Petrus
• Social Matrix created by the
social worker (LP)
• Mentors also call parents
when a student does
something good (MD)
29. Ideas for the future
Communication for Social Change
European Conference on Positive Psychology July 2nd 2014
• Positive news => high response
• Paradigm & mind shift
• In-depth interviews, transcription
• Focus on micro behaviour
• Mixed methodology: interviews, ‘mystery
guest’, photography
• Implementation in the community
30. Communication for Social Change
More information:
www.media-health.nl
info@media-health.nl
Thank you!
Communication for Social Change
European Conference on Positive Psychology July 2nd 2014
