Stigma and complex emotional needs
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Stigma and complex emotional needs: exploring the impact of stigma on wellbeing and experience of mental health services
IRAS ID
332065
Contact name
Ruksana Begum-Meades
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Imperial College London
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 5 months, 1 days
Research summary
The aim of the study is to generate hypotheses about factors associated with self-stigma in people with personality disorder, how it may manifest, and the impact of and interaction with professional stigma towards personality disorder.
Up to 30 service users with and without a formal personality disorder diagnosis will be recruited to take part in individual interviews. I will examine patient experiences of stigma and contact with mental health services, as well as the impact of interactions with peer support workers and lived experience practitioners. Other aspects that will be explored include the impact of public attitudes on self-stigma, including the role of family and friends, as well as the role of adverse childhood experiences in shaping how individuals feel about themselves.
Up to 25 NHS staff and lived experience practitioners/peer support workers with experience of working in both general adult mental health services and specialised services for patients with personality disorder will be recruited to take part in staff focus groups. Here, clinical understanding of self-stigma will be explored, as well as examining professional attitudes, how these may develop, and how they may act as a moderating factor on levels of self-stigma.
Interviews will be semi-structured, and interview schedules will be applied flexibly to allow for the emergence of new themes during data collection. All interviews will be audio recorded and later transcribed. Data will be analysed using thematic analysis (Braun & Clarke, 2012).
REC name
South West - Cornwall & Plymouth Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
24/SW/0049
Date of REC Opinion
20 Jun 2024
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion