Psychology researcher Damian Scarf has just completed research which looked at gains in mental resilience among teenagers who had taken part in a 10-day developmental voyage upon the sailing ship Spirit of Adventure.
The study found that nine months after finishing the voyage, the teenagers who took part had increased resilience compared with those in a control group who did not.
It also found the increase in resilience was predicated by the sense of belonging the teenagers gained from being part of the group of 40 who go on each voyage.
Dr Scarf said the results showed the benefits of going on the voyage, but also had more general applications when it came to raising teenagers and the importance of belonging to groups in being equipped to meet life's challenges.
To increase a teenager's sense of belonging, parents should keep lines of communications with them open and encourage them to be involved in sports teams or cultural groups.
Helping a teenager feel as if they belonged should also be a major factor when it came to choosing a high school.
The research was unique in that it showed the gain in mental resilience was still present nine months on.
Similar pieces of research only showed initial gains.
Dr Scarf believed the extended gains could be down to the power of social media making it easier for participants to maintain friendships they had made on the voyage.
The research added to other studies highlighting the importance of ''social cures'', which had shown that having a sense of belonging affected everything from addiction, life expectancy to performance at university.
