What Outcomes do Young People Who Self-harm Expect from Therapy
Research type
Research Study
Full title
What Outcomes Do Young People Who Self-Harm Expect from Talking Therapies and Did They Achieve Them?
IRAS ID
210492
Contact name
Mark Clamp
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Lancaster University
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 0 months, 15 days
Research summary
There are a growing number of young people accessing therapy because of emotional distress leading to self-harm behaviours. Appreciation of the value of client feedback and their perception of therapy is increasingly seen as essential to informing therapeutic practice, training and service provision. There is a dearth of research into understanding young people’s expectations of talking therapies where self-harm is an aspect of their presentation. With increasing numbers of young people being referred to, or accessing Primary Care Mental Health Services (PCMHS) there is a greater imperative to ascertain if current practice meets the needs of young people who self-harm.
This study will start to bridge the gap in knowledge by uncovering and deepening the understanding of what outcome goals young people aged between 16 and 20 who self-harm hoped for when accessing talking therapies. This study will either confirm that current practice is sound or demonstrate where changes may be required. Furthermore, a deeper understanding of young people’s process in talking therapies will provide evidence to therapists, service managers and commissioners to inform decisions about interventions and service provision. The participants will be recruited in England from a PCMHS setting adopting the Stepped Care Model and is part of Norfolk & Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust (NSFT). The young people selected would undergo a one to one recorded semi-structured interview lasting between 30 and 60 minutes asking them to describe the outcomes they hoped for from therapy and whether they achieved those outcomes and what, in the therapy, helped or hindered them in achieving those outcomes. The recordings will be transcribed and analysed to determine themes or patterns. The study will be submitted as part of a PhD Thesis. The participants will be part of the study until submission of the PhD currently expected to be 2018/2019.
REC name
London - Riverside Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
17/LO/1360
Date of REC Opinion
15 Sep 2017
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion