Project Reports

Citizen Social Science brings together social science researchers and citizens focusing on social issues, social phenomena and the social dimensions of the world, while applying and integrating social science methodologies and theories in their collaborative research efforts. These characteristics influence, for example, the focus and management of the project, the role of the researchers and the citizens, the participatory work, and ethical concerns. There are many handbooks and guidelines for conducting citizen science, but mostly within natural sciences. Yet, there are few handbooks detailing hands-on citizen social science with young people, and focusing on co-creative qualitative or mixed-methods approaches. This handbook, and its toolkit, build on the experiences from the H2020 YouCount project (2021-2023) and represent a unique contribution to the field of citizen social science. It is, overall, an exercise on social science communication that can be useful to a wide array of publics: practitioners, academics, policymakers, youth organisations and anyone interested in citizen social science as a way of creating a future shaped by more inclusive, participatory research and social innovation.

The aim of this deliverable is to contribute to the evolving understanding of the costs and benefits associated with Citizen Science in general and Youth Citizen Social Science in particular through a critical analysis of the YouCount project findings. This critical examination is grounded in a comprehensive multi-assessment framework that collects evidence of the scientific, social, democratic, economic and individual dimensions of YouCount.

This deliverable includes the planning, conduction and reporting from the end conference of the H2020 EU YouCount Project that was held from December 4- 5 2023, in Brussels (hybrid).

This deliverable describes what hands-on Youth Citizen Social Science (Y-CSS) looks like in practice in the YouCount multiple case study. Using data primarily from individual case reports from consortium partners, it compares and contrasts the experience of implementation across the 10 cases of Y-CSS. It builds upon the conceptual and methodological frameworks in D1.2 and D1.3, the ethical framework and work securing ethical approvals established in D2.1, the D1.5 Report from ECSA workshops, and the strategy for evaluating Y-CSS. A summary of ethical challenges and how these were dealt with will be elaborated upon in the upcoming D6.5 Ethics Final Report by January 31, 2024.

This report will include impact assessments of the YouCount Project, and youth citizen social science (Y-CSS) based on the chosen basket of indicators, including SDG and MoRRI indicators.This report will include impact assessments of the YouCount Project, and youth citizen social science (Y-CSS) based on the chosen basket of indicators, including SDG and MoRRI indicators.The vison of YouCount is twofold, addressing and combining both the scientific and societal needs of our time. The scientific vision of YouCount is to strengthen the transformative and participatory aspects of CS and social science, by enabling citizen participation in all facets, reaching out for a more egalitarian way of conducting science. The societal vision of YouCount is to contribute to create inclusive and innovative societies for European youths and to empower them in promoting active citizenship and a just and equitable future, particularly for youths with disadvantages.

D4.1 Meta Report describes the YouCount evaluation methodology, analysis and outcomes. It is rooted in WP4 – this is to be distinguished from the impact dimension, which is also part of WP4, but will be reported by Lorenz and colleagues (2023). More specifically it addresses Task 4.1 (development of the evaluation framework) to Task 4.9 (external evaluation), including steps like data collection, data analysis, and continuous process evaluation aspects.

The main focus lays in the theoretical foundations of the YouCount evaluation, the implementation and adaptions, the analysis and the outcomes thereof. Lessons learned and suggestions for future projects are discussed.

The Report comprises 7 parts: (1) an introductory overview of YouCount’s aims and intentions in evaluating the multiple case study with 10 cases in 9 countries doing social inclusion Y-CSS; (2) the theoretical background of the original evaluation framework as outlined by Juricek and colleagues (2021); (3) the methodological design within the project context; (4) the implementation as adapted for the YouCount context, including derivations and later adaptations; (5) the actual outcomes and results of the analysis of the evaluation data; (6) the lessons learned as derived from the overall evaluation process; and finally (7) the conclusion remarks.

The main target group for this Deliverable are fellow CSS scientists, practitioners, but also lay people genuinely interested in the topic of how to evaluate a multi-country social inclusion Y-CSS project with mixed-methods approaches.

This deliverable includes a presentation of the social inclusion cross-case analysis of the 10 YouCount hands-on citizen social science (CSS) case studies. It explores three key empirical research questions: What are young people’s views on the critical issues for social inclusion? What are young people’s experiences with opportunities for social inclusion in their daily lives? What new means and policies to increase social inclusion are needed?This deliverable includes a presentation of the social inclusion cross-case analysis of the 10 YouCount hands-on citizen social science (CSS) case studies. It explores three key empirical research questions: What are young people’s views on the critical issues for social inclusion? What are young people’s experiences with opportunities for social inclusion in their daily lives? What new means and policies to increase social inclusion are needed?The primary source of data for the analysis presented in this deliverable is the final case study reports, based on a common template structuring the analytical dimensions, written by the professional researchers working on the 10 YouCount case studies. In addition, some preliminary findings from the YouCount App data analysis are also integrated.

This deliverable includes a presentation of the social innovation analysis of the ten YouCount hands-on citizen social science (CSS) case studies implemented under YouCount WP3 Task 3.3 'Cross-case analysis of local innovation, social change and the innovative potential of CSS'. The cross-case social innovation analysis explored the ten YouCount hands-on CSS case studies as social innovation processes that created new framings for youth social inclusion, provided space for new social encounters for social actors otherwise rarely meet (including most prominently intergenerational encounters), developed new social practices for collaborative research and innovation, and enacted a new temporality compared to conventional social science research. The cross-case social innovation analysis also explored the CSS cases as creating social impacts at multiple levels that included the increased self-confidence of R-YCS, the enhanced sense of accomplishment and pride by R-YCS, the strengthened feeling of social belonging by R-YCS, the establishment of new network constellations, the importance of 'research relationships,' the enactment of a relational approach to doing research, the stakeholders' perspective change on youth, and the future collaborations that were inspired. The technological perspective on the YouCount cases highlighted the role and impacts of technology and digital tools in CSS. The adaptation of these tools had both positive and negative effects on social inclusion, engagement, learning processes and interpersonal interactions. The analysis showed that the normalisation of technology can lead to digital fatigue  – with young people opting for analogue, offline methods  –  and a digital divide  –  when certain members of the CSS research groups need further support in interacting with technology in the research process. Finally, analysing the role of CSS in social innovation revealed that 'CSS as social innovation' can be detected in the YouCount cases as 'enacting CSS as a micro-level social inclusion process' and as 'a relational research approach', while some limitations are also shared. CSS as a tool for social innovation can be demonstrated through the creativity it enables, the 'school of democracy' and empowerment it enacts, the innovative potential it may bring to some sectors (e.g. education, employment), while some cautionary notes are also provided on the paradox of technology mediation. 

This deliverable is part of the H2020 EU YouCount project running from 2021- 2023. It is provided by the ECSA Working group on Empowerment, inclusion, and equity (EIE WG) jointly hosted by the European Citizen Science Association (ECSA) and the Living Knowledge Network (LKN) in collaboration with OsloMet as Coordinator and KTU as leader for Work package 1 (WP1) focusing on stakeholder involvement and the development of a conceptual framework for youth citizen social science (Y-CSS).  

This deliverable shares our learnings on youth-centred CSS from the joint webinars by EIE WG and YouCount held in autumn 2021 and September 2023 with a particular focus on the webinar 2023. It has been created with contributions and experiences from youth and youth co-researchers, practitioners and researchers working with youth and relevant stakeholders across 9 European countries. This collective expertise provides important insights for the design of future citizen social science projects with youth, as well as practical suggestions on how to enable and support youth to meaningfully contribute to Y-CSS.

According to the DoA, this Deliverable is an attachment to the DEC- plan, and therefore it is intimately linked to it. It will establish the means to encourage partners to identify their participation in the planned activities as defined in table 6 of the DEC plan, ‘Targets for key dissemination activities’. After the mid-term review of the Deliverable in Month 18, the reviewers requested a revision of the deliverable. The requirement consisted of adding (1) the list of events in which the project had participated so far, and (2) the list of events in which the project plans to participate.

D1.1 stems from the work that has been implemented under Work package (WP) 1 “Task 1.1. Identification and mobilizing of stakeholders at the European and international levels”. This task is aimed at establishing a multilevel platform of stakeholders and seeks to link up the YouCount project to other CS-related projects and organizations.

The YouCount evaluation design is a multi-method approach that spans across the whole duration of the project in WP4. It is therefore current work in progress, as some methods only just have been implemented and will be analyzed in the future. The deliverable aims at making the research design, as well as the current stand of the evaluative studies, transparent and publicly available. This happens in the spirit of open science, with the goal of doing “Science for and with Society”. Hereby outlined is the theoretical design, the way of carrying it out, and the current stand of each study implementation in the overall project.

This deliverable provides a sample of open data from the YouCount project concerning social inclusion from the research and innovation activities in WP2 (multiple case studies) and WP3 (social inclusion). The sample includes research outputs in terms of case posters from a multiple case study of ten cases within the field of youth citizen social sciences, qualitative data concerning youths’ views on social inclusion and data from the co-creative innovation process of the YouCount App Toolkit.

This report is a summary report from the first session of webinars by EIE WG and YouCount held inautumn 2021 that will continue in autumn 2023. The webinars were initially planned as one workshop with youths and stakeholders but were changed to digital webinars due to the pandemic. A final report will be submitted in 2023.

This deliverable provides a more detailed description of the criteria and procedures that will be used to identify and recruit participants for the project. In particular, it specifies the standards and procedures for the recruitment and consent of young citizen scientists, who will fill the roles of both research participants and researchers.

The YouCount project is a large project with a substantial number of participants that requires proper knowledge management and knowledge transfer throughout the project period and beyond. This intellectual property rights (IPR) plan aims to support good conduct regarding intellectual property (IP) in the project.

This data management plan (DMP) outlines what data will be collected; how research data will be handled during the project and after finalization; what methodology and standards will be used; whether and how this data will be shared and/or made open; and how the data will be curated and preserved. The DMP is a living document that will be updated throughout the project period as the project evolves.

Based on the overall strategy described in the Document of Action (DoA), the Dissemination, Exploitation, and Communication (DEC) plan will be developed to ensure stakeholder engagement at multiple levels. It will draw on the networks, communication channels, and vehicles of the Partners represented in the consortium, aligning with the activities they organize, including the Advisory Board (AB) and European Citizen Science Association (ECSA).

It will establish the means to encourage partners to identify their participation in the planned activities. Therefore, the main objective of this deliverable is to set out the strategy to report on the participation of the planned events to monitor the dissemination activities linked to these events and make sure that it happens along the lines of the DEC Plan.

The project leaflet is one of the main communication activities within WP5, Dissemination, exploitation and communication which seeks to design and implement an effective and targeted communication and dissemination strategy as expressed in the Dissemination, Exploitation and Communication (DEC) Plan.

This 'Project Identity Guidelines' has been created to assist all partners involved in the YouCount project. It provides an overview of the elements that make up the YouCount identity system and presents guidelines for working with them. Through notes and examples, it demonstrates how these elements can be combined to communicate a consistent identity that represents the YouCount project.

This deliverable presents an early methodological framework for the hands-on youth citizen social science (Y-CSS) study, describing our plans for data collection and analysis which remain under development, including the YouCount App toolkit that will be piloted in Spring 2022.

This project report presents the Internet list of stakeholders to be part of a CSS (citizen social science) network and established link to relevant CS (citizen science) projects and organizations. The deliverable has been developed under Workpackage 1 Task 1.1. Identification and mobilising of stakeholders at the European and international levels. This task is aimed at establishing a multilevel platform of stakeholders and seeks to link up YouCount to other CS-related projects.

This report describes the conceptual framework for youth involved in citizen social science in the YouCount project. Moreover, the report presents the use of citizen social science as a mean for social innovation, highlights the dialogical framework for co-creative youth citizen social science, explores the conceptual and methodological framework for evaluation of the outcomes, and discusses ethical considerations and risk mitigation strategies when conducting youth involved citizen social science.

The report shortly describes the establishment of collaboration with the local data protection office/ethical approval institutions and the Safety and Ethics Board (SEB) as well as procedures and status of formal ethics approvals of the multiple case-and evaluation studies according to General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and national regulations.