Communality and strengthening peer support

Being part of a community is a key factor in promoting well-being. Communality is promoted by the experience of belonging to groups. Concerns have been raised over the repeated observations that about one third of students do not feel that they belong to any study-related group. The experiences of loneliness have increased, and loneliness has various negative effects on study ability and well-being. Promoting communality and strengthening peer support have therefore been key measures aimed at improving student well-being. The various measures and practices are located in the continuum of proactive and reactive practices. Here, critical issues include the degree of structuring of the activities as well as the role and skills required of instructors. Voluntary participation in proactive activities requires active participation and initiative from participating students. As resources and initiative weaken, more structured approaches are needed to support participation. When utilising peer instructors, particular attention must also be paid to the training of students who lead and guide the groups and to the provision of support during the guidance processes. The information bank contains material on the practices of strengthening communality and peer support implemented in different higher education institutions.