Mental health of apprentices

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Project duration: 01.03.2025 - 15.04.2027

Anchor project: Anchor project: Promoting mental health through activities that foster connection in inter-company apprenticeships

This health promotion project explores and experiences the connection between activities that foster connection, resilience, and psychosocial health. The focus on everyday activities that promote connection encourages both individual and social participation.
The target group are apprentices and employees of the inter-company apprenticeship training programme (ÜBA) in retail and sales at BFI Vienna. The apprentices are between 15 and 25 years old and most of them have a migrant background. They often grow up in a socio-economically precarious environment and are confronted with reduced opportunities on the labour market.

Fünf Personen stehen in einem Halbkreis vor Bäumen. Alle heben einen Arm zum abklatschen.
© iStock | Rawpixel Ltd.

The project focusses on the everyday lives of young people and is therefore directly linked to the interests and living environment of the apprentices. A workshop module entitled "Strengthening mental health through bonding activities" is being developed together. This involves working out which everyday activities are "good" for the individual and who or what they feel connected to. This can be other people, groups or communities, but also society, nature or certain places.
The participating apprentices explore what they need in order to experience connectedness. Apprentices and employees of the ÜBA plan a joint activity that they realise as part of the training. A permanent engagement with activities of connectedness, resilience and psychosocial health in the ÜBA is implemented through further measures.

Research objectives

  • The psychosocial health and well-being of apprentices increases measurably.
  • The workshop module "Promoting mental health through activities of connectedness" will be carried out in all new groups of the ÜBA trade and sales vocational training programme at BFI Vienna Rampengasse from September 2026.
  • At the end of the project period, the apprentices of the ÜBA trade and sales vocational training programme at BFI Vienna Rampengasse will carry out more activities in which they experience connectedness.
  • Other interested educational institutions of the ÜBA, schools and those responsible for health promotion for adolescents and young adults are familiar with the manual for the workshop module

Funding bodies

Supported by the Healthy Austria Fund

Cooperation partners

Vocational Training Institute Vienna

Forschungsbereiche

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Health and Quality of Life

UN Sustainable Development Goals

Schriftzug SDG 3 Gesundheit und Wohlergehen
Schriftzug SDG 4 Hochwertige Bildung

Project management Hochschule Campus Wien

Expert advisory board

  • Dipl. Sozialpäd.in (FH) Anja Bischeltsrieder, MSc
    Social Work study program, University of Applied Sciences Campus Vienna

  • Prof.in (FH) Mag.a Dr.in Ursula Costa
    Head of InnTra Institute, Head of Master's programs in Occupational Therapy and Science, University of Applied Sciences Health Tyrol

  • Susanne Mulzheim, MSc
    Team Leader Corporate Health Management Campus Vital, University of Applied Sciences Campus Vienna

  • Mag. Dr. phil. Markus Zöchmeister
    Lecturer, Faculty of Psychotherapy Science, Sigmund Freud Private University

Study programs involved

Bachelor

Occupational Therapy

full-time

Bachelor

Occupational Therapy

extended part-time