Public defence: Knut Ivar Bjørlykhaug

Background

We know that social support is crucial in our lives. This support is especially important when life is at its most challenging, and when we experience mental health problems. A diversity of research shows an evident connection between social support and mental health; less social support leads to poorer health, and vice versa. Therefore, we wanted to explore experiences and conditions related to what can promote and inhibit social support. The study was developed in collaboration with people who have personal experience with mental health problems.

Aim

This study primarily seeks to explore experiences and conditions that can promote and inhibit social support, as understood by users, employees and volunteers. Furthermore, the intention is to highlight how support takes place, as well as political and structural factors that affect social support. The research context is municipal mental health services in different parts of Oslo.

Methodology and analysis

The study is based on collaborative methodology and has a qualitative orientation. Furthermore, the dissertation is inspired by phenomenological and hermeneutic philosophies. Methods for data creation were focus group interviews and participatory observation. In the analysis process, we used thematic analysis, ethnographic interpretation and poetry as a method of analysis and as a tool.

Findings

The findings in the study are presented in three articles. The first article is a scoping review exploring the connections between social support, mental health and mental health recovery. The second article presents domain discussions related to the participants' perspectives on what can promote and inhibit social support. The findings in article two are highlighted in the following topics: (1) the quality and vulnerability associated with social support (a) lived experience, reciprocity and understanding (b) “ghosting” and shame (2) conditions that promote social support (a) stable environment and room for diversity (b) social rhythm and healing rituals (3) conditions that inhibit social support (a) economic barriers and (b) social challenges in contemporary society. The study's third article further explores conditions that can promote and inhibit social support, through poetic analysis and dissemination, based on focus groups and participatory observation. This study highlights the outcomes in two poetic main verses: (1) that which flourishes and (2) that which withers. The outcomes in the last article go deeper into the phenomenon of social support, and the findings provide a different insight regarding living conditions, support and mental health. The results show the importance of aesthetics, finances, attitudes and structural conditions for social support and mental health.

Conclusion

The findings of this study point to the need for services to develop stable meeting places that can offer social rhythm, care and expansion of social networks. Moreover, experiential knowledge and employees and volunteers who have experience with mental health problems can promote social support. Stigma and shame associated with psychiatric diagnoses and poverty works as barriers to the experience of social support. In addition, a culture characterized by excessive individualism also constitutes a barrier to developing supportive communities, and services characterized by care. A policy that helps people with complex mental health problems out of poverty is crucial for people's recovery processes. In concrete terms, our findings suggest that promoting mental health requires a better redistribution policy and a social policy that directs measures for social support at several levels; emotional, affirmative, informative and instrumental.