Experiences of growth following psychosis in a family
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Grounded theory of growth experiences for family members of people diagnosed with psychosis.
IRAS ID
336012
Contact name
Molly Heeger
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Canterbury Christ Church University
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
N/A, N/A
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 0 months, 30 days
Research summary
The current research focuses on family members' perspectives of family growth associated with psychosis. Growth associated with psychosis is taken from post-traumatic growth literature, where positive changes are perceived following adverse life experiences. The importance of family members' perspectives is widely recognised as there is an emphasis on family involvement in psychosis services due to the significant impact that psychosis and the societal responses to it has on the families. There is much literature regarding the burden and challenges associated with psychosis but less so on perceptions of family growth associated with psychosis. Gathering family members' perspectives related to psychosis is crucial as research has found that those who experience psychosis report growth involving relational changes where the value placed on relationships can be enhanced following experiencing psychosis (Slade et al., 2019).
Recruitment will take place in NHS psychosis services and to be eligible a family member must perceive growth following the experience of a relative with psychosis and that family member must have had a diagnosis of psychosis at least 1 year ago.
Family members will take part in a recorded interview via MS Teams where they will be asked questions about their perceptions of family growth in response to psychosis. Data will be analysed using a grounded theory approach to build a theory around how family members perceive the existence of family growth and what the facilitators and inhibitors are.
The research will contribute to the literature on family growth associated with psychosis as it will be explored from a family member's perspective. This is useful as family involvement and support is important and it is meaningful to understand perspectives on what leads to growth. This may inform how clinicians may understand family's perceptions of growth to inform them on how they may support hope for the future.
REC name
East Midlands - Leicester South Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
24/EM/0046
Date of REC Opinion
11 Mar 2024
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion