Learn more about the PRISMA Project

The PRISMA Project is an applied research project with a strong training component, aimed at improving practices within the Judiciary and the Federal District’s Welfare Services
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Throughout its lifecycle, the project will promote institutional collaboration, knowledge systematisation, and the development of tools for assessment and decision-making focused on children and adolescents.
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The goal is to contribute to more consistent decisions and interventions, aligned with rights protection and oriented towards the wellbeing of children and adolescents.

The problem the project addresses

The Principle of the Best Interests of the Child (BIC) is a central guiding principle for ensuring rights. However, its practical application faces significant challenges.

In many psychosocial and legal contexts, gaps in knowledge, training and decision-making support tools persist. These gaps can hinder the development of decisions and interventions that are truly focused on children and adolescents, and on their wellbeing.

The PRISMA Project was created precisely to address this challenge: to investigate how BIC can be applied more consistently in practice and to support the development of tools and knowledge that strengthen its application.

General Objective

To strengthen the consideration and practical application of BIC in professional practice through applied research and training activities aimed at the Judiciary and the Federal District’s Welfare Services.

Specific Objectives

• Develop research and training activities at the University of Brasília (Brazil) aimed at enhancing theoretical and practical knowledge of BIC;
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• Offer BIC-focused training to professionals in the Judiciary and the Federal District’s Welfare Service;

• Map professionals' knowledge, attitudes, and practices regarding BIC;

• Consider the perspectives of children and adolescents through structured and responsible consultation;

• Test and refine the Best Interests Matrix, a tool for assessment and decision-making focused on children and adolescents.

Target Audience

The PRISMA Project is aimed primarily at professionals working in the Judiciary and the Federal District’s Welfare Services.

These professionals include psychosocial teams, social workers, psychologists, social services professionals, and other stakeholders involved in decisions and interventions that impact the lives of children and adolescents.‍

‍The project also engages with:
• Policymakers
• Researchers
• Students
• Professionals interested in the topic

Benefits to Stakeholders

Although the project focuses on improving professional practices, children and adolescents are the primary beneficiaries of its outcomes.

By strengthening more consistent decisions and interventions oriented towards the biopsychosocial wellbeing of children and adolescents, the project aims to contribute to the effective guarantee of rights and the improvement of institutional responses in contexts involving childhood and adolescence.

Institutional Collaboration

The project is based at the University of Brasília (Brazil) and involves international academic collaboration from researchers affiliated with the University of Sussex (United Kingdom), the University of Girona (Spain), and the Florida Institute of Technology (United States).

This collaboration will contribute to technical-scientific exchange, the methodological strengthening of research, and international dialogue on practices focused on the best interests of children and adolescents.