Contribution of participatory action research to knowledge mobilization in mental health services for children and families

2015 ◽  
Vol 14 (5) ◽  
pp. 599-615 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Ungar ◽  
Patrick McGrath ◽  
David Black ◽  
Ingrid Sketris ◽  
Shelly Whitman ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Action Research ◽  
Mental Health Services ◽  
Health Services ◽  
Participatory Action Research ◽  
Knowledge Mobilization ◽  
Children And Families ◽  
Participatory Action

Allyship and solidarity, not therapy, in child and youth mental health: Lessons from a participatory action research project with psychiatrized youth

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 78-89 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Liegghio
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mental Illness ◽  
Action Research ◽  
Young People ◽  
Participatory Action Research ◽  
Youth Mental Health ◽  
Participatory Action ◽  
Action Research Project ◽  
Research Project ◽  
The Social

While globally advances have been made to recognize children as social actors in their own right, for psychiatrized young people their experiences of distress are often seen as a limitation and thus used as a justification for denying their meaningful participation in matters of concern to their lives. However, what would it mean if ‘mental illness’ was not seen as a ‘limitation’, but rather as an ‘epistemological position’ from which the social world is experienced, understood and acted upon? What would it mean if our theories about ‘distress’ and ‘helping’ were premised on the subjugated knowledges of psychiatrized children and youth? The consumer/survivor-led research movement has made significant gains in answering these questions for the adult, but not necessarily for the child and youth mental health field. The purpose of this article is to critically examine the significance of psychiatrized young people setting and executing their own research and, ultimately, practice agendas. Presented are the outcomes of an evaluation of a participatory action research project examining the stigma of mental illness conducted with seven psychiatrized youth, 14 to 17 years old. The outcomes suggest our roles as practitioners and researchers need to shift from being ‘agents’ working on behalf of to ‘allies’ working in solidarity with young people to change the social conditions of their marginalization. The article concludes with the limits of consumer/survivor-led research for addressing adultism and, instead, ends with a call for decolonizing children’s mental health.

scholarly journals A Proposed Framework Based On Literature Review of Online Contextual Mental Health Services to Enhance Wellbeing and Address Psychopathology During COVID-19

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
AHMET TANHAN ◽  
K. Fatih Yavuz ◽  
J. Scott Young ◽  
Ahmet Nalbant ◽  
Gökmen Arslan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mental Health Services ◽  
Health Services ◽  
Literature Review ◽  
Mental Health Professionals ◽  
Participatory Action ◽  
Psychiatric Interview ◽  
Economic Issues ◽  
Mental Health Profession ◽  
Acceptance And Commitment

Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) became a pandemic and is causing unprecedented biopsychosocial, spiritual and economic issues across the world while mostly affecting unprivileged populations. Turkey has gradually implemented new regulations, which slowly affected the entire country and increased the need for mental health services disproportionally. We conducted a comprehensive literature review on mental health in Turkey during COVID-19. There was no well-grounded peer-reviewed manuscripts or projects utilized a framework. Therefore, we wrote this manuscript to provide a conceptual framework grounded in ecological systems theory, acceptance and commitment therapy, and community-based participatory action research to introduce contextually evidence-based online mental health services: hotline, psychiatric interview, counseling, and Read-Reflect-Share group bibliotherapy. The framework aims to (1) address biopsychosocial spiritual and economic issues, (2) enhance wellbeing, and (3) empower the mental health profession in research and practice. Our preliminary findings and clinical experience indicated that the proposed framework and interventions derived from the framework enhanced wellbeing and decreased psychopathological symptoms in experimental group compared to control groups. Based on the preliminary analysis, most of the online, phone based, or face-to-face mental health services introduced in this manuscript were highly recommended by the participants to be provided to general public during and after COVID-19. Mental health professionals and authorities can use the proposed framework and interventions to develop interventions and research in order to alleviate pandemic-based biopsychosocial spiritual and economic issues and enhance wellbeing.

scholarly journals The Development of an Experience Measure for an Online Digital Mental Health Community

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charlotte Mindel ◽  
Lily Mainstone-Cotton ◽  
Santiago de Ossorno Garcia ◽  
Aaron Sefi ◽  
Georgia Sugarman ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Action Research ◽  
Participatory Action Research ◽  
Participatory Action ◽  
Digital Service ◽  
Modified Delphi ◽  
Health Community ◽  
Health Communities ◽  
Community Roles ◽  
Experience Measure

Online digital mental health communities can contribute to users’ mental health positively and negatively. Yet the measurement of outcomes and impact relating to digital mental health communities is difficult to capture. In this paper we demonstrate the development of an online experience measure for a specific children and young people’s community inside a digital mental health service. The development is informed by three phases: (i) item reduction through Estimate-Talk-Estimate modified Delphi methods, (ii) user testing with participatory action research and (iii) a pilot within the digital service community to explore its use. Rounds of experts talks help to reduce the items. User experience workshops helped to inform the usability and appearance, wording, and purpose of the measure. Finally, the pilot results highlight completion rates, difference in scores for age and community roles and a preference to ‘relate to others’; as a mechanism of support. Outcomes frequently selected in the measure show the importance of certain aspects of the community, such as safety, connection, and non-judgment previously highlighted in the literature. Self-reported helpfulness scales like this one could be used as indicators of meaningful engagement within the community and its content but further research is required to ascertain its acceptability and validity. Phased approaches involving stakeholders and participatory action research enhances the development of digitally enabled measurement tools.

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