Peer promoted LunchChat app at university: connecting students at mealtimes to prevent/reduce loneliness

孤独是大学生中的一个相当大的问题。在最近的一项调查中，四分之一的学生一直或大部分时间都感到孤独。少数族裔或性别背景的学生，或残疾或自闭症学生，国际学生，或有关怀责任的学生报告的孤独感甚至比其他学生更高。长期的孤独会损害我们的身心健康。我们最近对37项干预措施进行了系统回顾，发现将学生聚集在一起的干预措施最有可能减少孤独感。因此，支持大学生在课堂外定期交流可能是预防/减少孤独的干预措施的关键因素。大多数大学根据爱好/兴趣举办学生社团/俱乐部，但并不是每个人都感兴趣或都能接触到这些社团/俱乐部。我们需要更具包容性的解决方案，利用学生在校园的时间，帮助打破形成社交联系的障碍。我们的目标是推动干预措施的共同设计和开发过程，以防止/减少广泛学生的孤独，特别是那些孤独风险较高的学生，他们可能难以通过现有的社团/俱乐部与他人联系。我们的干预措施包括a)一个应用程序(‘午餐聊天’)，它可以为共享的‘饮食活动’做广告；b)午餐聊天内的一个社交网络组件，帮助用户介绍自己和/或寻找有共同兴趣的人；c)培训学生成为该倡议的同行推动者；D)在大学内部开展一项(社交)媒体活动，宣传这一倡议。用户可以通过‘午餐聊天’创建和/或加入饮食活动，并根据组织者的性别等对活动进行过滤。这款应用将学生们在午餐或休息时间聚集在一起，围绕着吃饭或饮料进行社交活动。活动邀请可以针对多个人，也可以只针对一个人。同辈促进者在学期期间定期组织小组活动(例如，每周三下午1点在主食堂)。这得到了宣传材料(例如，桌旗)和包括短视频在内的(社交)媒体活动的支持。共享午餐/咖啡休息时间为那些可能因为时间、地点、语言或缺乏特定技能或信心而难以加入社团/俱乐部的人提供了一种轻松的社交方式。共享用餐时间可以帮助形成社会关系，这可以增加与他人的联系和社会支持。这有助于防止/减少孤独，增加幸福感。我们的干预借鉴了有关社交网络、友谊形成和用餐的社会意义的文献。我们将在以前研究的基础上，与学生共同创建和共同开发。作为计算机科学的最后一年项目，开发了一个包含基本组件的‘午餐聊天’应用程序原型。我们的下一阶段将纳入学生在最近和未来的患者和公众参与与参与(PPIE)课程中确定的新的重要功能。我们的目标是：根据进一步的学生反馈和分析，改进和调整LunchChat应用程序，即添加新功能；游戏化；共同设计同伴促进元素，以实现学期期间午餐/咖啡/晚餐期间的定期会面；与学生测试该应用程序的最终版本，以了解其功能、理解/用户友好性和安全性；共同设计一项大学范围内的(社交媒体)活动以促进干预。我们的干预全面实施，提供了一种综合的、学生主导的、整个大学预防孤独的方法，吸引了任何背景的学生，支持更积极的大学体验。

Loneliness is a considerable problem among university students. In a recent survey, a quarter of students felt lonely all or most of the time. Students of minoritized ethnic or gender backgrounds, or with disabilities or autism, international students, or with caring responsibilities report even higher levels of loneliness than other students. Long-lasting loneliness can damage our physical and mental health. Our recent systematic review of 37 interventions identified that interventions which brought students together in groups were most likely to reduce loneliness. Supporting university students to connect regularly outside of the classroom could therefore be a key ingredient for interventions to prevent/reduce loneliness. Most universities host student societies/clubs based on hobbies/interests, but these may not be of interest or accessible to everyone. More inclusive solutions are needed that make use of the time students are on campus and help break down barriers to forming social connections.Our aim is to further the co-design and development process of an intervention to prevent/reduce loneliness among a wide range of students, especially among those at higher risk of loneliness who might struggle to connect with others via existing societies/clubs.Our intervention includes a) an app ('LunchChat') enabling the advertising of shared 'eating events'; b) a social network component within LunchChat that helps users to introduce themselves and/or seek people with shared interests; c) training of students to become peer promoters of the initiative; d) a (social) media campaign within the University to advertise the initiative.'LunchChat' allows users to create and/or join an eating event and filter events by e.g., gender of the organiser. The app brings students together at lunch or break times, to socialise around a meal or drink. Event invites can be for several people or just one person. Peer promoters organise regular group events during term time (e.g., 1pm on Wednesdays in main canteen). This is supported by promotional material (e.g., table flags) and a (social) media campaign, including short videos.A shared lunchtime/coffee break offers a relaxed way of socialising for those who may struggle with joining societies/clubs because of issues linked to timing, location, language, or lack of specific skills or confidence. Shared mealtimes can help with the formation of social relationships, which can increase feeling connected to others and social support. This can help prevent/reduce loneliness and increase wellbeing.Our intervention draws on literature on social networks, friendship formation and social significance of meals. We will build on our previous research co-created and co-developed with students. A prototype 'LunchChat' app with basic components was developed as a final year computer science project. Our next phase will incorporate new important features identified by students in recent and future Patient and Public Involvement & Engagement (PPIE) sessions.Our objectives are to:Refine and adapt the LunchChat app according to further student feedback and analytics, i.e., add new features; gamification;Co-design the peer promotion element to enable regular meet-ups over lunch/coffee/meal during term time;Test the final version of the app with students regarding its functionality, comprehension/user-friendliness and safety;Co-design a university wide (social media) campaign to promote the intervention.Implemented in full, our intervention offers an integrated, student-led, whole university approach to prevention of loneliness, appealing to students of any background, supporting a more positive university experience.