Skills and challenges for in peer support for young adults with serious mental health conditions

Name: Skills and challenges for in peer support for young adults with serious mental health conditions
Published: 2025-02-28
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0

Name	File Type	Size	Last Modified
PSS skills suervey part 2.pdf	application/pdf	263 KB	02/28/2025 09:03:AM
PSS skills survey part 1.pdf	application/pdf	273.6 KB	02/28/2025 08:57:AM
Peer Support Skills Data to Deposit 1Mar25.pdf	application/pdf	264.2 KB	02/28/2025 09:05:AM

Project Citation:

Walker, Janet. Skills and challenges for in peer support for young adults with serious mental health conditions. Ann Arbor, MI: Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research [distributor], 2025-02-28. https://doi.org/10.3886/E221161V1

Project Description

Summary: A consistent refrain from the literature on peer support is that research and practice are hampered by a lack of theory-based models that specify the activities and skills of specific peer support roles, and describe how skillful practice is linked to outcomes. As part of a larger study intended to help fill this gap, the current study aimed to define and validate a set of key skills and related challenges in one-on-one peer support for older youth and young adults. Phase one of the study engaged peer support specialists (PSSs) and peer support users (PSUs) from first episode psychosis (FEP) and non-diagnostic-specific (NDS) programs across the United States in a series of discussion groups focused on the activities, skills and outcomes of effective peer support. Qualitative analysis of the discussion group material led to the specification of six general skill areas and, within each of these, a series of sub-skills and key practice challenges. In the current study, the PSSs reviewed a document describing these, rated the importance of each of the skills and challenges, and provided open-ended feedback on wording and conceptualization. Based on feedback, wording of practice skills and challenges was finalized, and a set of related organizational challenges connected to each skill area was added to the document.

Funding Sources: NIDILRR (90IFRE0054)

Scope of Project

Geographic Coverage: USA

Time Period(s): 5/1/2023 – 8/15/2023

Collection Date(s): 5/1/2023 – 8/15/2023

Universe: peer support specialists (PSSs) and peer support users (PSUs) from first episode psychosis (FEP) and non-diagnostic-specific (NDS) programs across the United States

Data Type(s): survey data

Methodology

Response Rate: Five months after phase 1 data collection was concluded, the research team successfully re-contacted 31 of the original 35 PSSs (15 from FEP programs and 16 from NDS programs). These PSSs were invited to participate in phase 2, which involved providing feedback via two online surveys on practice skills and challenges identified in phase 1. (The feedback survey task was broken into two parts due to the length of the whole task). A total of 30 PSSs (15 from FEP programs and 15 from NDS programs) participated in the first survey, with 27 of these (14 FEP, 13 NDS) also completing the second survey.

Sampling: The research team recruited young adults from across the United States to participate in a series of virtual small-group discussions. The study recruited young people with experience providing and/or using peer support in multidisciplinary community-based programs for young people diagnosed with serious mental health conditions. These included first episode psychosis (FEP) and non-diagnosis-specific (NDS) programs. Research team members sent an announcement and informational flyer to email lists that reached peer support specialists (PSSs) and peer support users (PSUs) across the United States. The announcement and flyer were also sent to individuals connected to local- and state-level peer support initiatives, with the request that they forward the materials to PSSs and PSUs in their own networks.

Data Source: Collected for this study

Collection Mode(s): web-based survey

Unit(s) of Observation: individuals

Related Publications

Release of this data has been delayed until 01/01/2027 at the request of the depositor.

Published Versions

V1 [2025-02-28]

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