FRIENDSHIP BENCH IN GERMANY
NEW YORK
Friendship Bench in Friedensau, Germany - at FAU
Mental health challenges, especially depression, is the third most common cause of sick leave in Germany. Around 40 to 50 % of students in Germany suffer from overwork and stress, with almost one in ten students showing signs of depression. The private, state accredited Friedensau Adventist University (FAU) located in Saxony-Anhalt is no exception – thus reflecting the social and individual challenges of our time. Furthermore a big proportion of our students are “international students”. Many of them come from countries of the Global South or Eastern Europe. Studying in an unfamiliar setting with a variety of challenges might cause feelings of loneliness, homesickness, adaptation problems, high expectations from their families back home etc.
To provide the most suitable prevention and intervention services possible, FAU decided to implement Friendship Bench counseling service on campus. Friendship Bench refers to a community-based, easily accessible lay counseling service for people who feel isolated, suffer from loneliness or are generally in a stressful life situation. The name “Friendship Bench” comes from the fact that these conversations take place on park benches in public spaces. It symbolizes a meeting place that embodies a trusting, safe space where it is possible to tell one's own stressful life situation or problem, one's own “story”. Friendship Bench counselors listen openly without judging. They are there for the visitors in an empathetic and warm-hearted manner and accompany them in their search for a suitable solution and its implementation. What is special about this community-based counseling concept is that it is carried out by trained lay people, originally (and still to a large extent) by grandmothers. The effectiveness of the approach has been scientifically proven in numerous studies and published in high ranking academic journals. Born out of the structural political and economic situation (especially the social and health care sector) in Friendship Bench‘s country of origin, Zimbabwe, it is now attracting worldwide attention.
In general, the concept of lay counseling is appealing to the German context due to various reasons:
Therefore, FAU intends not to limit the Friendship Bench initiative to the university campus and its specific needs. Based on a Memorandum of Understanding signed between Friendship Bench and Friedensau Adventist University in the summer of 2024, Prof. Silvia Hedenigg and Prof. Andreas Bochmann, Ph.D., have completed the three-stage training, translated the teaching materials into German and are registered as Friendship Bench trainers. Since spring 2025 FB counseling service is available in German and English to all members of the university – students and staff.
Aligning with the vision of FB in a walking distance for all, our middle and long-term plan is to spread it to communities beyond our campus as well. By now an English-speaking group finished the training and provides counseling to peer students and community members. In a monthly support group, they get support and supervision. The German speaking group finished level one and will proceed in October with L2 and L3.
In a kick-off event on April 3, 2025 Prof. Dr. Dixon Chibanda, presented the Friendship Bench model to the university community. In a lively presentation, Prof. Chibanda described the personal story that led to the idea of Friendship Bench and its vision. He stressed the central element of Friendship Bench to mark the first implementation of Friendship Bench in Germany as follows: “It's all about human connection”. Numerous questions following the presentation reflected the great interest of the audience.
For the second time, FAU welcomed Prof. Dixon Chibanda on June 22 for his book presentation: “The Friendship Bench: How Fourteen Grandmothers Inspired a Mental Health Revolution”. Despite the summer heat of 33 degrees, a captive audience listened to Prof. Chibanda read passages that not only describe the motivation and starting point of the project, but also contained key messages for our multicultural campus and the social and global challenges of our time.
Regardless of his own biography, the perceived one-sidedness due to his Western-influenced medical studies, he emphasized during the book presentation that apart from cultural, historical and ethnic differences, it is the similarities that people around the world share and that we should focus on, not the differences that separate us.
Dixon Chibanda is open to questions of any kind and, given the time available, engages in conversation with our students, inviting them to read and comment on spontaneously selected passages. Spontaneous, trusting situations arise and it becomes clear that it is the personality of this person that allows this kind of encounter and dialog. We are deeply grateful for this and look forward to continuing this special collaboration.
(Text: Prof. Dr. phil. Dr. rer. medic. Silvia Hedenigg | All Photos: Friedensau Adventist University | Inna Mayer).
Prof. Hedenigg and Prof. Bochmann will be glad to provide further information: silvia.hedenigg@thh-friedensau.de and/or andreas.bochmann@thh-friedensau.de
1
Germany too is suffering from prevention and treatment gaps. Getting fast and smooth access to social and mental health care services can be difficult in Germany as well.
2
Germany – as many countries of the Global North – experiences demographic changes with strong impact on generational issues in the family and economy. Friendship Bench might bring generations together and allow them to benefit from an intergenerational exchange in terms of life experience, empathy and wisdom. Simultaneously FB engagement creates meaningful purposes for the elderly. This aspect goes along with endeavors like multigenerational housing and community events, which try to connect generations and omit loneliness and social isolation (on both sides).
3
The effectiveness of the Friendship Bench is well-documented, with over 100 peer-reviewed publications in top scientific journals validating its success and adaptability across diverse settings. FAU plans a pilot study to assess the acceptability and feasibility of the Friendship Bench approach in Germany as well.