Psychosocial Bouldering With Refugee and Host‐Community Adolescents in Lebanon: A Qualitative Study
Lola Eversmann, Anne Radegast, Beat Baggenstos, Vivien Leßmann, Simon Rosenbaum, Charbel Najem, Luisa Brokmeier, Leona Kind, Katharina LuttenbergerABSTRACT
Background
Adolescents in Lebanon, particularly those affected by displacement, live under challenging conditions shaped by conflict, poverty, uncertainty and disruptions to everyday life. Against this backdrop, ClimbAID developed YouCLIMB, a psychosocial bouldering intervention for adolescents from refugee and host communities. An earlier quantitative study demonstrated significant improvements in well‐being and reductions in psychological distress among participants. Building on these findings, the present qualitative study explored participants' life circumstances as context for their engagement with the intervention, perceived mechanisms of psychosocial change and the transfer of programme‐related learning to everyday life.
Methods
YouCLIMB is a group‐based, 8‐week programme integrating principles of bouldering therapy and experiential education. Thirty‐eight semi‐structured interviews were conducted with adolescents from Syria, Palestine and Lebanon residing in Central Bekaa. Data were analysed with qualitative content analysis.
Results
The availability of social support emerged as a key theme of participants' life circumstances, acting as either a resource or a vulnerability. Three mechanisms of change were identified: bouldering as a source of well‐being, social connection in a safe space and the development of problem‐solving and coping strategies. Participants reported multiple transfer effects, indicating that learning experiences at YouCLIMB generalised to enhance their abilities to navigate everyday challenges.
Discussion
YouCLIMB offered a safe and engaging psychosocial space for fostering both individual and relational growth. As a low‐threshold intervention, structured bouldering programmes may reach adolescents with limited access to mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS), highlighting a promising pathway for sports‐based mental health interventions in settings affected by displacement and protracted crisis.
Trial Registration
All procedures were approved by the Antonine University Baabda ethics committee (approval number: 279‐2022) in February 2022, and the study was registered prospectively in April 2022 (ISRCTN13005983)