EMPOWER-MH: Enhancing Youth Mental Health and Digital Wellbeing in the Digital Age
Improving mental health outcomes for people in education, training
The EMPOWER-MH project addresses the urgent need to improve mental health outcomes for young individuals navigating education, training, and employment (ETE) in an increasingly digital Europe. In response to rising levels of psychological distress, loneliness, and functional impairments linked to internet addiction and overexposure to social media, the project integrates digital mental health tools with a humanistic, interdisciplinary focus on digital wellbeing, youth flourishing, and the sociology of education/digital policies.
The project adopts a transdisciplinary framework—merging mental health sciences, digital sociology, education policy analysis, organisational and youth studies—to generate evidence-based, person-centered, and socially responsive interventions.
EMPOWER-MH aims to prevent and alleviate psychological harm and foster a broader, long-term vision of flourishing and wellbeing in the lives of young people, especially in increasingly remote and hybrid ETE working environments.
The project addresses the critical intersection of youth mental health, digital technology, society and the evolving landscape of education, training, and work, particularly in remote and hybrid environments.
Building upon previous research's foundational findings, it aims to develop and scale person-centered interventions to improve digital wellbeing and mental health outcomes for young people across Europe.
Project Idea
The project acknowledges the significant impact of digital transformation, accelerated by the pandemic, on work and educational settings. It addresses the rising psycho-social discomfort among youth, exacerbated by digital technologies and the shift to remote/hybrid environments in education and at work, and the need to understand and mitigate the associated risks.
Objectives
Critically Engaging with the Sociology of Digital Education Policies:
• Analyze how national and European education and training systems shape youth well-being and access to mental health resources.
• Investigate how digital education policies—especially during and post-pandemic—intersect with social inequalities and mental health outcomes.Investigating Internet Addiction and Social Media-Related Discomfort:
• Conduct multi-country studies assessing the mental health impacts of excessive digital consumption, focusing on addictive patterns.
• Examine neurocognitive, emotional, and psycho-social dimensions of screen fatigue, information overload, and disconnection anxiety.Promoting Digital Wellbeing and Youth Flourishing:
• Operationalize digital wellbeing through indicators such as emotional resilience, life satisfaction, social connectedness, and purpose.
• Develop interventions to cultivate positive mental states, identity development, and civic engagement.
• Integrate neuroscientific insights to inform design of effective interventions.
• Enhance digital literacy to address the digital divide and ensure equitable access to wellbeing support.Digital Wellbeing and Mental Health Tools:
• Integrate evidence-based features into tools to prevent internet addiction and mitigate overexposure.
• Co-create mindfulness and critical digital literacy modules for educational and employment settings.Policy Engagement and Institutional Capacity Building:
• Foster partnerships with youth, families, educators, employers, policymakers, and civil society organizations.
• Deliver actionable policy recommendations and tools.
• Ensure ethical use of neuroscientific data and address cognitive enhancement concerns.
• Formulate policy briefs and provide toolkits to educators and employers.
Background and Rationale
EMPOWER-MH maintains and deepens its alignment with the HORIZON-CL2-2025-01-TRANSFO-08 call's objectives by:
• Targeting the complex interplay of digital transformation, youth mental health, and systemic educational structures.
• Responding directly to the need to address psychosocial discomfort and digital risk behaviors.
• Offering an expanded vision of support—not only reducing harm but nurturing resilience, agency, and personal development.
• Embedding a critical policy lens, ensuring long-term institutional change and the integration of sociological insights into practice.
Who We Are Looking For
We are looking for Partners among institutions that align with the project’s vision and strategic goals, including:
• Psychology and Psychiatry Institutes – for clinical and behavioral expertise
• Sociology of Education Scholars – and policy analysts
• Youth-focused NGOs – and digital literacy organizations
• Digital technologists and AI developers – focused on ethical tool development
• Public institutions and policymakers – engaged in youth affairs, education, and labor
Potential Goals for Partners
Each partner is invited to select their goals based on their interests and capacities:
• (onField Research): Digital habits, wellbeing, and policy analysis
• Development, co-creation and piloting of digital wellbeing and mental health interventions
• Stakeholder engagement, capacity building, and ethical frameworks
• Dissemination, communication, sustainability, and scalability
How to Apply
📌 Interested organisations should fill out the online application form, specifying their areas of interest and expected contributions.
The application should include:
✔ A short description of the institution
✔ Areas of expertise and interest
✔ Expected contributions or benefits from participation
📩 We look forward to welcoming partners to co-create a future flourishing education system in Europe!
If you would like to participate in this groundbreaking initiative:
👉 CLICK HERE TO SUBMIT YOUR APPLICATION – Deadline: 15 July, 2025
