Co-production in mental health research: reflections from the People Study
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to reflect on the process of co-producing mental health research where work was shared between university academics, charity-based researchers and a Lived Experience Advisory Panel.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors express the opinions of a research team made up of people with experience of using mental health services, being carers and being academically trained researchers from a range of health and social science disciplines. Some had experience in several areas. The paper is co-produced to provide collective reflection and recommendations.
Findings
Co-production of research is not well documented in published literature. The authors believe there is scope to develop co-production approaches, but further conceptual and theoretical work is needed alongside empirical studies. A socially situated complex research project, possibly involving multi-stakeholder groups, demands flexibility in approach. Similarly to user-controlled and other emancipatory methodologies, co-production makes the democratisation of research a primary objective in order to produce better quality and more relevant studies. Co-production also addresses inequalities in power and control within research projects; this way of working does provide a healthy challenge to traditional research hierarchies.
Practical implications
Lessons learned should be honestly shared to develop co-production research methods. Projects need to have a strategy for how to value different contributions and facilitate constructive relationships if discord emerges. Establishing clear project roles, expectations and process for payment are essential in developing genuine collaborative partnerships.
Originality/value
It is a viewpoint paper.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
The People Study was funded by the Big Lottery Fund. The views expressed here are those of the authors and not necessarily those of the funding body. The authors thank the local authorities who participated in this research, and the four User Led Organisations that recruited and supported members of the Lived Experience Advisory Panel who guided and contributed to the study. The authors are grateful to the study participants and their care managers who made this research possible.
Disclaimer: the authors have no conflicts of interest. Based on this research, toolkits were developed for practitioners, service users and carers about using personal budgets in mental health. They are freely available and can be accessed here: http://mcpin.org/people-study/
Citation
Pinfold, V., Szymczynska, P., Hamilton, S., Peacocke, R., Dean, S., Clewett, N., Manthorpe, J. and Larsen, J. (2015), "Co-production in mental health research: reflections from the People Study", Mental Health Review Journal, Vol. 20 No. 4, pp. 220-231. https://doi.org/10.1108/MHRJ-09-2015-0028
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2015, Emerald Group Publishing Limited