The impact of mental health recovery narratives on recipients experiencing mental health problems: Qualitative analysis and change model (original) (raw)
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The Canadian Journal of Psychiatry
Objective. Mental health recovery narratives are often shared in peer support work and antistigma campaigns. Internet technology provides access to an almost unlimited number of narratives, and yet little is known about how they impact on recipients. The aim of this study was to develop a conceptual framework characterising the impact of recovery narratives on recipients. Method. A systematic review of evidence about the impact of mental health recovery narratives was conducted. Searches used electronic databases (n=9), reference tracking, hand-searching of selected journals (n=2), grey literature searching and expert consultation (n=7). A conceptual framework was generated through a thematic analysis of included papers, augmented by consultation with a Lived Experience Advisory Panel. Results. 8,137 articles were screened. Five papers were included. Forms of impact were: Connectedness; Understanding of recovery; Reduction in stigma; Validation of personal experience; Affective responses. Behavioural responses. Impact is moderated by characteristics of the recipient, context and narrative. Increases in eating disorder behaviours was identified as a harmful response specific to recipients with eating disorders. Conclusions. Mental health recovery narratives can promote recovery. Recovery narratives might be useful for clients with limited access to peers, and in on-line interventions targeted at reducing social isolation in rural or remote locations, but support is needed for the processing of the strong emotions which can arise. Caution is needed for use with specific clinical populations.
Characteristics of mental health recovery narratives: Systematic review and narrative synthesis
PLOS ONE
Background Narratives of recovery from mental health distress have played a central role in the establishment of the recovery paradigm within mental health policy and practice. As use of recovery narratives increases within services, it is critical to understand how they have been characterised, and what may be missing from their characterisation thus far. The aim of this review was to synthesise published typologies in order to develop a conceptual framework characterising mental health recovery narratives. Method A systematic review was conducted of published literature on the characteristics of mental health recovery narratives. Narrative synthesis involved identifying characteristics and organising them into dimensions and types; and subgroup analysis based on study quality, narrator involvement in analysis, diagnosis of psychosis and experience of trauma. The synthesis was informed by consultation with a Lived Experience Advisory Panel and an academic panel. The review protocol was pre-registered (Prospero CRD42018090188). Results 8951 titles, 366 abstracts and 121 full-text articles published January 2000-July 2018 were screened, of which 45 studies analysing 629 recovery narratives were included. A conceptual framework of mental health recovery narratives was developed, comprising nine dimensions (Genre; Positioning; Emotional Tone; Relationship with Recovery; Trajectory; Use of
Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology
Purpose Narratives of recovery have been central to the development of the recovery approach in mental health. However, there has been a lack of clarity around definitions. A recent conceptual framework characterised recovery narratives based on a systematic review and narrative synthesis of existing literature, but was based on a limited sample. The aims of this study were to assess the relevance of the framework to the narratives of more diverse populations, and to develop a refined typology intended to inform narrative-based research, practice and intervention development. Method 77 narrative interviews were conducted with respondents from four under-researched mental health sub-populations across England. Deductive and inductive analysis was used to assess the relevance of the dimensions and types of the preliminary typology to the interview narratives. Results Five or more dimensions were identifiable within 97% of narratives. The preliminary typology was refined to include new definitions and types. The typology was found not to be relevant to two narratives, whose narrators expressed a preference for non-verbal communication. These are presented as case studies to define the limits of the typology. Conclusion The refined typology, based on the largest study to date of recovery narratives, provides a defensible theoretical base for clinical and research use with a range of clinical populations. Implications for practice include ensuring a heterogeneous selection of narratives as resources to support recovery, and developing new approaches to supporting non-verbal narrative construction.
2019
846108_digital_supplement_clear for Mental Health Recovery Narratives and Their Impact on Recipients: Systematic Review and Narrative Synthesis by Stefan Rennick-Egglestone, Kate Morgan, Joy Llewellyn-Beardsley, Amy Ramsay, Rose McGranahan, Steve Gillard, Ada Hui, Fiona Ng, Justine Schneider, Susie Booth, Vanessa Pinfold, Larry Davidson, Donna Franklin, Simon Bradstreet, Simone Arbour and Mike Slade in The Canadian Journal of Psychiatry
How do recorded mental health recovery narratives create connection and improve hopefulness?
Journal of Mental Health, 2022
Background: Mental health recovery narratives are an active ingredient of recovery-oriented interventions such as peer support. Recovery narratives can create connection and hope, but there is limited evidence on the predictors of impact. Aims: The aim of this study was to identify characteristics of the narrator, narrative content and participant which predict the short-term impact of recovery narratives on participants. Method: Independent studies were conducted in an experimental (n ¼ 40) and a clinical setting (n ¼ 13). In both studies, participants with mental health problems received recorded recovery narratives and rated impact on hopefulness and connection. Predictive characteristics were identified using multi-level modelling. Results: The experimental study found that narratives portraying a narrator as living well with mental health problems that is intermediate between no and full recovery, generated higher self-rated levels of hopefulness. Participants from ethnic minority backgrounds had lower levels of connection with narrators compared to participants from a white background, potentially due to reduced visibility of a narrator's diversity characteristics. Conclusions: Narratives describing partial but not complete recovery and matching on ethnicity may lead to a higher impact. Having access to narratives portraying a range of narrator characteristics to maximise the possibility of a beneficial impact on connection and hopefulness.
Narratives of Mental Health Recovery
Brown, W. (2008). Narratives of Mental Health Recovery. [Refereed Journal Article]. Social Alternatives Journal, 27(4), 42-48. This article presents narratives of mental health recovery to investigate and better understand the journey towards recovery for individuals in Scotland. Findings from a research study conducted with this group suggest that recovery is a process – a life journey that has ups and downs. It amounts to much more than an absence of symptoms of illness. Although individual conceptualisations of recovery vary, common themes emerge that link recovery experiences. These include the central role of having hope and being optimistic about their future, having meaning and purpose in one’s life, being valued for social contributions and having trusting, respectful, and reciprocal relationships. Timely access to the right combination of treatment and supports can help individuals better navigate their recovery journeys. Findings provide evidence that people who experience mental health problems can have expertise of their own problems, and many of the most valuable lessons about recovery can be learned from these individuals. Narrators describe recovery as a transformative process sometimes ignited by a turning point, but often acknowledged through refl ection.
Recovery conversations provide space for consumers of mental health services to identify how life, post diagnosis, might be lived. Anthony (1993) notes that 'recovery is a simple but powerful vision' (p.13) however there is no universally accepted definition of recovery in a context of mental health. Conceptualising recovery as an individual journey, that has light and shade can provide an expansive view on consumers and their experiences. A recovery narratives study, recently conducted by The University of Sydney, identified that consumers of recovery services believed that their mental health needs were viewed separately, at times, to issues of physical health, culture, addiction issues and relationship stressors. Broad recovery narratives encourage consumers to be active participants in their own journey as 'opposed to passive recipients of their mental health care' (Allott and colleagues, 2002, p.15). Consumers understanding of the role of their physical health, culture and trauma may benefit notions of recovery. This paper identifies how consumers, practitioners and peer-workers, working in a recovery-oriented model, can be guided by participant stories that include factors on the periphery of mental health, and how they may assist in developing a recovery framework that offers both a process and an outcome.
Exploring recurrent variables in individual narratives of recovery from mental illnesses
2018
There is a rapid growth of using survey materials, questionnaires, and structured interviews in mental health recovery research where researchers prepare questions for respondents. This puts the researcher on the driving seat and prevents the participant from fully expressing themselves; as a result, an in-depth information about their condition may not be captured. In this study, 25 narratives of individual recovery journeys and success stories were explored. The rationale was to investigate major recurrent variables across all recovery journey narratives which were reported to be instrumental in the process of wellness. After collecting narratives, key factors associated with recovery from mental illness were extracted and recorded. 25 adult participants were opportunity samples of heroes and heroines who have recovered from psychotic or bipolar disorders. Findings revealed that Perceived Control, Social & Self-Engagement, Hope and Meaning, External Support, and Healthy Lifestyle ...
INCRESE: Development of an Inventory to Characterize Recorded Mental Health Recovery Narratives
2020
Objective: Mental health recovery narratives are increasingly used in clinical practice, public health campaigns, and as directly-accessed online resources. No instrument exists to describe characteristics of individual recovery narratives. The aims were to develop and evaluate an inventory to characterize recorded recovery narratives. Research Design and Methods: A preliminary version of the Inventory of Characteristics of Recovery Stories (INCRESE) was generated from an existing theory-base. Feasibility and acceptability were evaluated by two coders each rating
A narrative study of mental health recovery: exploring unique, open-ended and collective processes
International Journal of Qualitative Studies on Health and Well-being
Purpose: Guided by narrative theory and by use of a narrative-inaction approach, the aim of this study was to explore how mental health recovery unfolds through individuals' engagement in everyday activities. Method: Data were created through participant observations with four individuals while doing everyday activities, and analysed through a narrative, interpretive approach. Findings: The findings show how mental health recovery involves unique and open-ended processes of narrative meaning-making, which unfold through an interplay between everyday activities, places and persons. Discussion: Based on these findings, we discuss how we may understand and support mental health recovery as collective processes.