Co-Creation of Activity Spaces: A study protocol for the evaluation of co-created local community interventions to support activity participation in youth across municipalities in Eastern Norway

Background Important gaps remain in our understanding of the complexity and impact of creating activity spaces for youth as a public health measure. This protocol outlines the study design, cases, and methods for the Co-Creation of Activity Spaces study, which evaluates the development, implementation, and impact of activity spaces in local communities in semi-urban and rural municipalities in Eastern Norway.

The activity spaces are developed within the context of the development project EMO (A Fun Detour) through co-creation processes with multiple stakeholders, including local youths. The evaluation study takes a pragmatic mixed-method approach, using a quasi-experimental design. It consists of three sub-studies (i.e., Process, Places and People) targeting the co-creation processes, the use of the activity spaces, and the potential impact for local youths. To gain knowledge of the processes, focus group interviews and concept mapping with involved stakeholders will be conducted. Usage of the activity spaces will be assessed through a monitoring system based on AI-technology and on-site observations. Finally, the impact will be examined through repeated cross-sectional surveys conducted before and after the establishment of the activity spaces, along with qualitative data from walk-along interviews and photovoice studies with local youths.

Through its focus on semi-urban and rural contexts and by using a novel method to capture long-term use of the activity spaces, the study will contribute new knowledge. The results will offer valuable insights into the co-creation processes, the evolving use of the newly constructed activity spaces, and their impact on local youths’ engagement in activities. This information can guide future projects aiming to establish youth activity spaces in both semi-urban and rural local communities. Competing Interest Statement The authors have declared no competing interest. Funding Statement The EMO (A Fun Detour) development project was supported by The Savings Bank Foundation DNB in Norway. This evaluation study was funded by the Research Council of Norway as part of the call for Collaborative and Knowledge-building Projects, grant number: 326799. Author Declarations I confirm all relevant ethical guidelines have been followed, and any necessary IRB and/or ethics committee approvals have been obtained. Yes The details of the IRB/oversight body that provided approval or exemption for the research described are given below: The three sub-studies have been notified to the Norwegian Agency for Shared Services in Education and Research (ref. no.: 616232, 535488, and 784252), which gave approval for this work. I confirm that all necessary patient/participant consent has been obtained and the appropriate institutional forms have been archived, and that any patient/participant/sample identifiers included were not known to anyone (e.g., hospital staff, patients or participants themselves) outside the research group so cannot be used to identify individuals. Yes I understand that all clinical trials and any other prospective interventional studies must be registered with an ICMJE-approved registry, such as ClinicalTrials.gov. I confirm that any such study reported in the manuscript has been registered and the trial registration ID is provided (note: if posting a prospective study registered retrospectively, please provide a statement in the trial ID field explaining why the study was not registered in advance). Yes I have followed all appropriate research reporting guidelines, such as any relevant EQUATOR Network research reporting checklist(s) and other pertinent material, if applicable. Yes Data Availability All data produced in the present study are available upon reasonable request to the authors, but restrictions apply to the availability due to agreements and approvals involving data security for participants from the Norwegian Agency for Shared Services in Education and Research. Abbreviations - AI - Artificial intelligence - CM - Concept mapping - GIS - Geographical information systems - NGO - Non-governmental organization - NIPH - Norwegian Institute of Public Health - NMBU - Norwegian University of Life Sciences - SDU - University of Southern Denmark - SOPARC - System for Observing Play and Recreation in Communities - SOPARNA - System for Observing Physical Activity and Recreation in Natural Areas - RCT - Randomized controlled trial