What distinct opportunities could relational wellbeing as framework offer to advance wellbeing research?: a purposive review of evidence

The notion of wellbeing emerged in resistance to deficit characterizations of people’s lives in mental health theory and intervention. It is an approach that rejects compartmentalization and stigmatization, with the aim of centering and presenting a more holistic view of personhood. Informed by a new program of research on youth wellbeing in the Global South, this paper seeks to engage critically with the potential value of an emergent framework called relational wellbeing for advancing research on youth wellbeing. As a formative step, a scoping review was conducted and published in 2024 covering the period 2013–2022. To update and capture possible changes in the literature since then, the authors embarked on a mini review framed by the following two overarching questions: how has relational wellbeing been applied in the more recent academic literature, and to what extent is it being employed as a distinct approach? The mini review confirms that relational wellbeing, understood as a distinct framework, is emergent, but not solidified. The term continues to be used to challenge individualistic models of wellbeing, firmly positioning relationships, culture and context as central to wellbeing. However, the construct continues to lack unified operationalization—used variably as a theoretical lens, analytic framework and still quite strongly as a measurable construct. While this reveals a field conceptually rich and influential, it remains methodologically diffused. Insights across different sections of the review, however, provide guidance for prospective scholars hoping to expand research that applies a relational framework to foster greater understanding and positive impact on youth wellbeing.