Building A Shared Measurement Tool for Measuring Belonging in the Community

An important part of positive well-being is that one feels loved and supported through mutually caring and respectful relationships, whether from friends, family, companions, mentors, or others that may be in the community (UNICEF Canada, 2019). That is, wellbeing is intimately related to a feeling of belonging. As such, improving one’s sense of belonging is often a target of community programs. However, in order to know whether programs are having their desired impact, there needs to be an effective means of measuring belonging. The project represents a collaboration between non-profits in Waterloo Region, led by Marillac Place, and researchers at the University of Waterloo with the objective to develop tools for the shared measurement of belonging across different community programs in order to examine program impact in an evidence-based manner. This project will contribute broadly to research on belonging and benefit the partner organization and their collaborators more effectively serve their community.

Faculty Supervisor:

Evan Risko

Student:

Partner:

Marillac Place

Discipline:

Sociology

Sector:

Health and Related Sciences & Technology

University:

University of Waterloo

Program: