Creating Social Connection, Belonging and Purpose overview
The following toolkit provides an overview of evidence-informed approaches to creating Social Connection, Belonging and Purpose, to help prevent and reduce alcohol and other drug (AOD) harms in your Local Drug Action Team (LDAT).
Creating Social Connection, Belonging and Purpose refers to activities that increase a person’s state of: feeling cared about by others, caring about others, and having a sense of belonging to a group or community.
These types of connections can help reduce feelings of loneliness and social isolation and can improve a person’s health and social/emotional well-being – which may, in turn, protect against alcohol and other drug-related harms.
Literature on this topic is often focused on older age groups, where loneliness/isolation is more common and difficult to address, but having little or poor quality connection to others is harmful for all ages and most programs can be adapted to suit different age groups
There are plenty of accessible programs LDATs can consider to inspire people to participate in social activities in their community. It may also be beneficial for LDATs to partner with existing organisations that already have a network of these programs/activities.
Toolkit Includes:
- Key points
- Drawing on existing programs
- Guiding principles
- Considerations for planning and delivery
- Creating Social Connection, Belonging and Purpose toolkit: key activity and measuring success
- Creating Social Connection, Belonging and Purpose toolkit: key steps
