| Summary: | This research aimed to understand whether music can be used as a tool to enhance Kenyan young women’s psychosocial well-being with a more culturally relevant and non-western approach. A major issue Kenyan young women face is to do with menstrual health management (MHM) in regard to their sexual reproductive health and rights (SRHR). MHM is often considered a taboo topic which can cause young women’s well-being to be neglected. This research was conducted in collaboration with Fida International, an NGO that utilizes psychosocial support (PSS) as a culturally relevant approach to empower local communities in Kenya. In relation to psychosocial support, looking at psychosocial well-being (PSW) is also a more appropriate approach for the Kenyan cultural context that highly values community. This ideology was also supported by the theoretical framework of the study which focused on belonging, African humanism and Ubuntu. The data consisted of songs that participants formed with the help of the method of empathy-based stories as well as the participants’ own perceptions on how the process of using music to discuss MHM felt. Both the theoretical framework and methodology were designed to allow the participants own voices to be heard in hopes to create new knowledge and enable a Kenyan centred perspective. The results indicated that music helped to positively enhance the well-being of Kenyan young women and is a culturally relevant method accessible to all. They showed that music can alleviate the difficulty of discussing taboo well-being related issues while increasing a sense of belonging.
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