Author: Dr. Shiva Prakash Srinivasan, Ms. Satvika Char, Mr. Samuel Prithiv J et al. Young adults experience an increased risk of developing mental health problems as they transition from school life to university life.
This is also the period of life where the peer group plays a significant role in their decisions. We describe this process of co-creating a peer support (PS) program in a residential university setting in India. The collaborative design process is described from a baseline felt need assessment to selecting and training student peer support volunteers (PSVs). The ongoing implementation and design of the program were informed by design thinking by the university staff and PSVs. The survey conducted among the first-year students of a University in South India revealed that the students were predominantly focused on difficulties in social interactions, lack of adequate…
