De Ervaren Impact van Heppie op het Sociaal Netwerk van Ouders; Een exploratief mixed-methods onderzoek naar de ervaren impact van Heppie op het sociaal netwerk van ouders van gezinnen met meervoudige en complexe problemen

Abstract

Multiproblem families are defined as families that suffer from long-term socio-economic and psychosocial problems. The problems within a family are often complex and intergenerational. Multiproblem families often lack a supportive social network. To allow these families to have positive experiences and to forget their worries, Het Vergeten Kind organizes Heppie holidays and Heppie weekend cycles. One of the aims of Heppie is to increase the social network of the families. Within this explorative mixed-methods study, questionnaires (n=50) and semi-structured interviews (n=8) were used to investigate the perceived impact that Heppie has on the social network of parents of multiproblem families. The research shows that the social network of the majority of parents has (temporarily) increased after Heppie. Besides the fact that the social network has grown in size, the majority of parents also experience support from this network. There are various elements of Heppie that influence the expansion of the social network. For example, contact with fellow sufferers, the length of weekend cycles and the supervision and organized activities are positive influences. The distance between the place of residence of the parents and the group composition have a negative influence on the enrichment of the network. In conclusion, it can be stated that Heppie has an impact on the perceived social network of parents.