Clinical Assessment of Insight: An Observational Study V 1.0
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Clinical Assessment of Insight in Psychiatric Ward Rounds: An Observational Study
IRAS ID
255485
Contact name
Wayne M Martin
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Essex
Duration of Study in the UK
2 years, 0 months, 0 days
Research summary
This study will explore how clinical professionals use the concept of insight on mental health wards. Insight is a technical term describing a service user’s understanding of illness. Despite numerous studies of the insight construct and development of a variety of “insight scales” to quantify it, there are continuing concerns about the proper characterisation of insight in mental illness, both in its reference to a service user’s compliance as well as its uncertain relation to key legal concepts such as mental capacity. No studies have been done of the actual use of the concept in clinical practice.
The research on insight is both needed and timely as we are in the midst of a fundamental review of mental health legislation prompted in large part by the 2006 adoption of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. The Law Commission’s 2017 report called for a single piece of legislation covering non-consensual treatment for both physical and mental disorders, which are now governed by Mental Capacity Act and Mental Health Act respectively.
This suggests there is a need for a critical re-examination, from a human rights perspective, of the use of the insight construct in clinical and legal practice. The study aims to contribute to this task within the wider Mental Health & Justice Project. The researchers will observe clinical discourse in ward rounds in three mental health wards including four psychiatrists and their care teams, dealing with different situations, phases of mental illness and service user populations. The study will describe how the concept of insight is used in their practices, analyse how it affects decisions about the service users’ treatment, legal status and other matters; and consider whether and in what form the concept can be used in a non-discriminatory way. The study will last two years.
REC name
London - Camberwell St Giles Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
18/LO/2204
Date of REC Opinion
13 Feb 2019
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion