Dependence and resistance in community mental health care—Negotiations of user participation between staff and users
Authors: Femdal I. , Knutsen I. R. 
Published: June 2017

Accessible Summary

What is known on the subject?

Implementation of user participation is described as a change from a paternalistic healthcare system to ideals of democratization where users’ voices are heard in relational interplays with health professionals.

The ideological shift involves a transition from welfare dependency and professional control towards more active service‐user roles with associated rights and responsibilities.

A collaborative relationship between users and professionals in mental health services is seen as important by both parties. Nevertheless, the health professionals find it challenging in practice to reorient their roles and to find productive ways to cooperate.

What this paper adds to existing knowledge?

This study illuminates how user participation is negotiated and involves multiple and shifting subject positions in the collaboration between users and professionals in community mental health care.

By taking different positions, the relationship between users and professionals develops through dynamic interaction.

This study challenges understandings of equality and implicit “truths” in user participation by illuminating subtle forms of power and dilemmas that arise in user–professional negotiations.

What are the implications for practice?

Instead of denying the appearance of power, it is important to question the execution of power in the interplay between users and professionals.

Focusing on the negotiation processes between users and professionals is important for increasing reflection on and improving understanding of the dynamic in collaboration and speech.

By focusing on negotiations, power can be used in productive ways in user–professional relationships.

Introduction

Implementation of user participation is considered important in today's mental health care. Research shows, however, that user participation lacks clarity and provokes uncertainty regarding shifting roles.

Aim

To investigate negotiation of user participation in a microstudy of interplay between users and health professionals in community mental health care.

Method

This qualitative study is based on semi‐structured in‐depth interviews, involving ten service users and ten professionals in community mental health care in Norway. The analysis is inspired by Willig's model for Foucauldian discourse analysis.

Results

The study illuminates the dynamic nature of user participation that arises through negotiation between users’ and professionals’ positions as change enablers, dependents, resisters, persuaders and knowledge holders.

Discussion

Discourses of user participation allow for different subject positions in mental health care. User participation also involves government and questions of power, as well as ambitions of change and control. Professionals act in different ways to make and keep users active, participating, enterprising and self‐governing, and users respond and take part within the same discursive framework.

Implications for practice

Awareness of subjects’ positions in discourses is important to increase reflection on the dynamic interplay in user–professional collaboration.