October 27th, 2025
YoPA has recently published a peer-reviewed article in Health Promotion International titled “Co-creating a systems map with adolescents: combining participatory research and systems thinking in YoPA Denmark”.
Led by the PhD student in YoPA Denmark, Line Madsen, and co-authored by some of YoPA’s senior researchers, this study presents the co-created systems map that illustrates the complex interplay of factors influencing physical activity behaviours of local youth, and describes the process of its development.
Key highlights
- Adolescents worked alongside researchers to map out the factors – from social networks and school routines to neighbourhood design and digital habits – that affect their movement and non-movement.
- The study demonstrates how systems mapping can illuminate leverage points for intervention that might otherwise remain hidden when using traditional linear models.
- The findings reinforce that promoting physical activity among young people is not just a matter of motivating individuals, but of reshaping the context in which they live, learn and move.
- Importantly for our equity-oriented community: the research underscores how factors such as access to safe public spaces, educational settings, and participatory processes influence outcomes – reinforcing the call for structural as well as behavioural solutions.
Read the article
You can access the full article here.
(If you don’t have access through your institution, please contact us and we’ll try to facilitate.)