Using the Ecomap to Identify Markers of Child and Adolescent Well-Being in Culturally Underrepresented Communities

Given the dearth of research on children’s expressions of well-being and the need for more diversity in psychological well-being research, the current study explored the utility of the ecomap (guided drawing and discussion of social network) as a potential methodological solution for engaging culturally and linguistically diverse youth in research. Reanalysis of archival data from an international study across 13 sites in 11 countries yielded patterns of similarities and differences about children’s expressions of well-being among underrepresented populations in research. This chapter details the analysis of narratives about children’s ecomaps, including coding; establishing intercoder agreement; determining levels of convergence and patterns across sites, gender, and grade level; and identifying themes and meta-themes/categories. Four meta-categories were identified: behavioral (expressions of well-being involving observable behaviors); cognitive (expressions of well-being involving thoughts, beliefs, or appraisals); emotional (expressions of well-being involving feelings); and combined (expressions of well-being that indicated more than one type of expression of well-being). The research reported here demonstrates the utility of a guided drawing activity for encouraging children’s expression of psychological well-being in the context of social relationships. The ecomap provides the structure for helping children to identify those who are important to them in their social networks and indicate which relationships are sources of stress and support. The ecomap then serves as a catalyst for children’s articulation of their experiences within these relationships. Such research tools hold promises for facilitating child rights, via child voice, in research.