Protective Factors for Mental Health Difficulties in Young People
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Resilience and Protective Factors for Mental Health Difficulties in Young People with Complex Needs: A Thematic Analysis.
IRAS ID
179822
Contact name
Stephanie Fagan
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Lancaster University
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 10 months, 30 days
Research summary
The purpose of this research is to run focus groups with young people who have experience of specialist Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS). The clinical psychology department within this service has identified a need for more information around protective factors and resilience (i.e. the things that help young people to 'bounce back' from mental health difficulties). It is often the case within services that a diagnosis and its accompanying difficulties take precedence over the personal characteristics of people (Badenoch, 2006). However, personal characteristics of the client have been suggested to contribute as much to successful outcome as the therapist or the therapy (Hook & Andrews, 2005). Therefore, it appears important to consider the strengths of individuals in addition to the needs and difficulties that resulted in them accessing services. Moreover, Graybeal (2001) suggested that these strengths may indeed be part of the solution. Young people who access this specialist care have complex needs, yet there is no known research on this topic for this group. The current research project would like to explore the perspective of this group of young people by facilitating a discussion around their understanding of protective factors and markers of resiliency. The participants will take part in one 90 minute focus group consisting of up to 6 people. Two focus groups will be conducted. The discussions will be analysed using thematic analysis. The researchers believe that it is helpful to explore these factors and use the findings to develop services and provide the opportunity for identifying strengths for young people who access these services in the future. This is echoed by The Department of Health (2011) who suggest that “if we are to build a healthier, more productive and fairer society in which we recognise difference, we have to build resilience” (pg 6).
REC name
North West - Preston Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
15/NW/0531
Date of REC Opinion
17 Jul 2015
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion