Evidence Library

Abstract: This study examined the experiences of mental health service users and homeless people in Australia, who had been involved in decisions about their own care or been involved as representatives to inform social service development/policy. They found that neither a rights agenda nor a consumerist approach helped to support the right kind of involvement. These approaches led to tokenism and had little impact. A rights-based approach means people can simply be in the room and participation becomes an end in itself. A consumerist approach has little meaning when service users don’t have a genuine choice about the services they receive. The authors conclude that a model of involvement based on social justice – that focuses on the desired outcomes of involvement - would support better involvement processes. The goal would then be to ensure that the policy or interventions that are influenced by involvement will deliver benefits for service users - in terms of enhanced opportunities to participate more fully in society.

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Categories: social care
reflecting on public involvement in research
journal article

Date Entered: 2014/08/19

Date Edited: 2014/08/19