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Field
Abstract
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Before
This project partners researchers with culturally diverse, under-resourced youth in Newham and Pimlico to co-create a Growth Mindset Intervention (GMI) combining virtual reality and live performance. Building on collaboration with Newham Council’s Youth Empowerment Service and pre-trial development (see https://cordap.uel.ac.uk/organization/ethnoacting-in-vr-diy-soft-skills-development), it fosters confidence and resilience, including for vulnerable children in care and participants in Pimlico Foundation’s school-based mentoring programme. Participants step into VR environments to voice the words of role models—from Nelson Mandela to TikTok influencers and local residents—selected by the youth themselves. Evidence shows GMIs help young people reframe failure as growth (Jiang et al., 2024). Funding enables optimisation of youth engagement through a co-created, digital, immersive, and embodied GMI, accompanied by rigorous evaluation to provide a culturally relevant wellbeing tool.
Drawing on the recommendations of the most recent systematic review of Growth Mindset Interventions (GIM), our project will answer the following questions to contribute to the existing gap (Jiang 2024: 268):
Impact on young people
1. Growth mindset: Does repeated participation in Ethnoacting in VR increase participants’ growth-mindset scores (e.g., ability to view intelligence and talent as developable)?
2. Resilience and confidence: How does the intervention affect self-reported resilience, confidence in public speaking, and willingness to embrace challenge or failure?
3. Mental-health indicators: Are there measurable changes in wellbeing (e.g., reduced anxiety about failure) after the programme?
Intervention design
4. How do VR immersion and ethnoacting work together to influence motivation and perspective-taking?
5. Which elements (role-model testimony, cultural relevance, interactive VR features) are most critical to engagement and impact?
6. How can the experiential, VR and creative elements complement the typical approach of classroom delivery (which usually involves reading, writing and discussion)?
Cultural relevance and equity
6. Does co-design with racially and culturally diverse youth increase a sense of belonging and identification with role models?
7. How does the intervention support equity in educational and career aspirations for young people from under-resourced communities?
Implementation and scalability
8. What practical factors (facilitation style, session length, technical requirements) affect fidelity, accessibility, and sustainability in youth-service settings?
9. Can the programme be adapted for other UK regions or different age groups while maintaining effectiveness?
10. Can the programme be adapted for delivery within one-to-one mentoring schemes for vulnerable or at-risk youth?
These questions allow both quantitative (pre/post surveys, validated scales) and qualitative (focus groups, observational notes) evaluation, creating a robust evidence base for wider adoption.
Clinical psychology shows that a growth mindset improves youth outcomes beyond academics, reducing psychological distress and strengthening self-regulation (Burnette et al., 2020; 2023). Growth Mindset Interventions (GMIs) can also narrow poverty-related achievement gaps (Claro et al., 2016). It is therefore crucial to examine how GMIs support social and emotional wellbeing in under-resourced, culturally diverse settings.
Newham, one of the UK’s youngest, most diverse, and migrant-populated boroughs, illustrates this need. Over 40% of its residents identify as Asian and 18% as Black, figures far above the national averages, while many neighbourhoods experience high levels of deprivation. Pimlico, in the City of Westminster, combines areas of significant wealth with pockets of deprivation, where schools often require additional support for vulnerable youth. Culturally relevant and racially diverse interventions align closely with the Nuffield Foundation’s educational mission to improve life chances and address structural disadvantage, while also enhancing welfare and protecting young people from involvement in crime.
This project will co-develop a GMI with young people at Newham Council’s Youth Empowerment Service, combining virtual reality and performance for the first time. Co-creation empowers participants and fills research gaps by:
1. focusing on challenged populations,
2. integrating youth feedback through mixed methods, and
3. advancing experiential approaches (Jiang 2024).
This work enhances Newham’s growth mindset curriculum (2023: 27) with embodied, digital, and participatory elements; supports Newham Council’s youth health and wellbeing strategy (2024); reinforces Pimlico Foundation’s youth empowerment initiatives in collaboration with Westminster Council, local schools, and the police (https://pimlicofoundation.co.uk); aligns with the National Youth Strategy’s call to strengthen local services (DCMS, 2024); and follows the National Youth Agency’s Curriculum Framework (2024), offering scalable practices for racially diverse communities across the UK.
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After
Researchers and culturally diverse, under-resourced youth in Newham and Pimlico, including vulnerable children in care and participants in Pimlico Foundation’s mentoring programme, co-create a Growth Mindset Intervention (GMI) combining virtual reality and live performance. Youth step into VR to voice role models they choose themselves, from Nelson Mandela to influencers, fostering growth mindset development. Grounded in Interacting Cognitive Subsystems theory, the intervention overcomes limitations of typical classroom GMIs by activating cognitive, emotional, and embodied learning, promoting deep engagement, self-reflection, and internalised perseverance (see pilot findings with Newham Council’s Youth Empowerment Service: https://cordap.uel.ac.uk/dataset/east-london-heroes-pilot-empowering-newham-youth-using-ethnoacting-in-vr-for-growth-mindset). This trial supports optimisation and rigorous evaluation.
Building on the latest systematic review of Growth Mindset Interventions (Jiang, 2024: 268), our project addresses key gaps:
Impact on young people
1. Does Ethnoacting in VR increase growth-mindset scores, reflecting the belief that intelligence and social circumstances can develop?
2. How does it affect resilience, self-reflexivity, and willingness to embrace challenge or failure?
3. Are wellbeing indicators, such as anxiety about failure, reduced?
4. Are improvements sustained at follow-up?
Intervention design
5. How do VR immersion and ethnoacting interact to boost motivation and perspective-taking?
6. Which elements, role models, cultural relevance, interactive VR, most drive engagement?
7. How can experiential VR elements complement typical classroom methods?
Cultural relevance and equity
8. Does co-design with diverse youth enhance belonging and identification with role models?
9. How does it support equitable educational and career aspirations?
Implementation and scalability
10. What practical factors affect fidelity, accessibility, and sustainability?
11. Can it be adapted for other regions, age groups, or one-to-one mentoring?
Mixed-method evaluation, pre/post surveys, focus groups, and observations, will provide a robust evidence base.
Clinical psychology shows that a growth mindset improves youth outcomes beyond academics, reducing psychological distress and strengthening self-regulation (Burnette et al., 2020; 2023). Growth Mindset Interventions (GMIs) can also narrow poverty-related achievement gaps (Claro et al., 2016). It is therefore crucial to examine how GMIs support social and emotional wellbeing in under-resourced, culturally diverse settings.
Newham, one of the UK’s youngest, most diverse, and migrant-populated boroughs, illustrates this need. Over 40% of its residents identify as Asian and 18% as Black, figures far above the national averages, while many neighbourhoods experience high levels of deprivation. Pimlico, in the City of Westminster, combines areas of significant wealth with pockets of deprivation, where schools often require additional support for vulnerable youth. Culturally relevant and racially diverse interventions improve life chances and address structural disadvantage, while also enhancing welfare and protecting young people from involvement in crime.
This project will co-develop a GMI with young people at Newham Council’s Youth Empowerment Service, combining virtual reality and performance for the first time. Co-creation empowers participants and fills research gaps by:
1. focusing on challenged populations,
2. integrating youth feedback through mixed methods, and
3. advancing experiential approaches (Jiang 2024).
This work enhances Newham’s growth mindset curriculum (2023: 27) with embodied, digital, and participatory elements; supports Newham Council’s youth health and wellbeing strategy (2024); reinforces Pimlico Foundation’s youth empowerment initiatives in collaboration with Westminster Council, local schools, and the police (https://pimlicofoundation.co.uk); aligns with the National Youth Strategy’s call to strengthen local services (DCMS, 2024); and follows the National Youth Agency’s Curriculum Framework (2024), offering scalable practices for racially diverse communities across the UK.
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Field
Intervention (Public)
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Before
This preliminary study will test the co-created Ethnoacting in VR for Growth Mindset (EthnoVR-GMI), developed with youth from Newham and Pimlico, against a traditional classroom-based Growth Mindset Intervention (GMI). Both aim to strengthen growth mindset and resilience among culturally diverse, under-resourced, and vulnerable youth.
Using a pre-post, follow-up, randomised controlled mixed-methods design, 150 participants aged 12–19 will be randomly assigned (1:1) to the VR or traditional intervention. Participants will also co-create the VR experience through participatory action research during pre-production and production stages. The study will run with three cohorts, or four if recruitment targets are not met.
Impact will be measured with the Implicit Theory of Intelligence Scale (ITIS) (Dweck & Henderson, 1988), with some questions adapted to address limitations identified by Ortiz Alvarado et al. (2024); the Beliefs About Social Mobility Scale (Browman et al., 2017; https://sparqtools.org/mobility-measure/beliefs-about-social-mobility-scale/#all-survey-questions-teens); and the “Kind of Person” Implicit Theory Scale (Dweck, 2013; https://sparqtools.org/mobility-measure/kind-of-person-implicit-theory-scale/). Quantitative data will be collected via Qualtrics and analysed using analysis of variance (ANOVA).
Qualitative data from focus groups (n = 12–13) and participant observation will be coded in NVivo, centring youth creativity and ensuring every participant has a voice. Sessions will be filmed for observational analysis and a short documentary for dissemination.
The PI will lead data collection, supported by Newham’s Youth Empowerment Service and Pimlico Foundation in recruitment and VR co-design.
The PI will lead data collection, supported by Newham’s Youth Empowerment Service and Pimlico Foundation in recruitment and VR co-design.
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After
This preliminary study will test the co-created Ethnoacting in VR for Growth Mindset (EthnoVR-GMI), developed with youth from Newham and Pimlico, against a traditional classroom-based Growth Mindset Intervention (GMI). Both aim to strengthen growth mindset and resilience among culturally diverse, under-resourced, and vulnerable youth.
Using a pre-post, follow-up, randomised controlled mixed-methods design, 150 participants aged 12–15 will be randomly assigned (1:1) to the VR or traditional intervention. Participants will also co-create the VR experience through participatory action research during pre-production and production stages. The study will run with three cohorts, or four if recruitment targets are not met.
Impact will be measured with the Implicit Theory of Intelligence Scale (ITIS) (Dweck & Henderson, 1988), with some questions adapted to address limitations identified by Ortiz Alvarado et al. (2024); the Beliefs About Social Mobility Scale (Browman et al., 2017; https://sparqtools.org/mobility-measure/beliefs-about-social-mobility-scale/#all-survey-questions-teens); and the “Kind of Person” Implicit Theory Scale (Dweck, 2013; https://sparqtools.org/mobility-measure/kind-of-person-implicit-theory-scale/). Quantitative data will be collected via Qualtrics and analysed using analysis of variance (ANOVA).
Qualitative data from focus groups (n = 12–13) and participant observation will be coded in NVivo, centring youth creativity and ensuring every participant has a voice. Sessions will be filmed for observational analysis and a short documentary for dissemination.
The PI will lead data collection, supported by Newham’s Youth Empowerment Service and Pimlico Foundation in recruitment and VR co-design.
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Field
Intervention (Hidden)
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Before
Timeline and Methods
September 2026 – Recruitment
Newham and Pimlico youth will be informed through YES and Pimlico Foundation, respectively, and provided with consent forms (including parental consent). After forms are returned, participants will be randomly allocated in Excel to the control or intervention group and receive their schedules.
October 2026 – Introductory Session x 3 cohorts (50 participants per cohort)
Both groups (25 each) in each cohort attend a two-hour session. After completing pre-tests on the three scales and two short qualitative questions (30 min), they hear a lecture on growth mindset, academic achievement, wellbeing, and career preparedness (40 min). Following a brief break, they contribute feedback on pre-selected figures and themes from the pilot that will inspire the VR content (40 min). This session is filmed for qualitative analysis and dissemination.
Nov 2026 – Feb 2027 – VR Design
Participant observation from recordings and feedback guides the PI and VR specialist in finalising eight VR role-model experiences. Using an established VR experimentation model, the team develops ethnoacted speeches drawn from archives and public resources to create immersive VR scenarios.
March 2027 – Intervention Sessions x 3 cohorts (50 participants per cohort)
Each group meets separately.
Control (≈2.5 h)
• 20-min lecture refresher.
• Exposure to growth-mindset testimonies via archival videos and text (20 min).
• Writing a short speech offering growth-mindset advice to younger children (20 min).
• Optional reading aloud (20 min).
• Two 15-min focus-group discussions.
• Post-intervention questionnaire (20 min).
Intervention (≈3.5 h)
• 20-min lecture refresher.
• Immersive VR session: participants choose among eight VR experiences, each with ethnoacted role-model speeches (about 10 min per participant, 80 min total with breaks).
• Speech writing (20 min).
• Optional delivery of the speech inside the VR environment (20 min).
• Two 15-min focus-group discussions.
• Post-intervention questionnaire (20 min).
April–May 2027 – Data Analysis
Quantitative data analysed in Excel or Python; qualitative data coded in NVivo20.
June 2027 – Documentary
Creation of a short documentary for open-access distribution and school screenings.
July 2027 – Follow-Up
Electronic follow-up survey of all participants. Data analysed and documentary finalised. Dissemination to schools and youth centres invites adoption of the VR model within curricula.
August 2027 – Reporting
Conference presentation, submission of an open-access paper (e.g., VR Frontiers), and a report shared with Newham Council and YES.
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After
Timeline and Methods
September 2026 – Recruitment
Newham and Pimlico youth will be informed through YES and Pimlico Foundation, respectively, and provided with consent forms (including parental consent). After forms are returned, participants will be randomly allocated in Excel to the control or intervention group and receive their schedules.
October 2026 – Introductory Session x 3 cohorts (50 participants per cohort)
Both groups (25 each) in each cohort attend a two-hour session. After completing pre-tests on the three scales and two short qualitative questions (30 min), they hear a lecture on growth mindset, academic achievement, wellbeing, and career preparedness (40 min). Following a brief break, they contribute feedback on pre-selected figures and themes from the pilot that will inspire the VR content (40 min). This session is filmed for qualitative analysis and dissemination.
Nov 2026 – Feb 2027 – VR Design
Participant observation from recordings and feedback guides the PI and VR specialist in finalising eight VR role-model experiences. Using an established VR experimentation model, the team develops ethnoacted speeches drawn from archives and public resources to create immersive VR scenarios.
March 2027 – Intervention Sessions x 3 cohorts (50 participants per cohort)
Each group meets separately.
Control (≈2.5 h)
• 20-min lecture refresher.
• Exposure to growth-mindset testimonies via archival videos and text (20 min).
• Writing a short speech offering growth-mindset advice to younger children (20 min).
• Optional reading aloud (20 min).
• Two 15-min focus-group discussions.
• Post-intervention questionnaire (20 min).
Intervention (≈3.5 h)
• 20-min lecture refresher.
• Immersive VR session: participants choose among eight VR experiences, each with ethnoacted role-model speeches (about 10 min per participant, 80 min total with breaks).
• Speech writing (20 min).
• Optional delivery of the speech inside the VR environment (20 min).
• Two 15-min focus-group discussions.
• Post-intervention questionnaire (20 min).
April–May 2027 – Data Analysis
Quantitative data analysed in Excel or Python; qualitative data coded in NVivo20.
June 2027 – Documentary
Creation of a short documentary for open-access distribution and school screenings.
July 2027 – Follow-Up
Electronic follow-up survey of all participants. Data analysed and documentary finalised. Dissemination to schools and youth centres invites adoption of the VR model within curricula.
August 2027 – Reporting
Conference presentation, submission of an open-access paper (e.g., VR Frontiers), and a report shared with Newham Council and YES.
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