Lived experience and family engagement in psychiatry research: A scoping review of reviews.

BACKGROUND: A growing body of research is addressing the process and science of engaging people with lived experience (PWLE) of mental health challenges and other psychiatric conditions, and family members, in research activities.

OBJECTIVE: This scoping review of reviews synthesizes literature reviews on the engagement of PWLE and family members in research across the field of psychiatry.

METHOD: Systematic searches were conducted in seven bibliographic databases. Records were independently screened first at the title and abstract level, then at the full-text level. Included were any literature synthesis studies published in English, French, or Spanish in any given year, focusing on the engagement of PWLE and/or family members in research within psychiatry. Twenty records were included. Data were extracted in a spreadsheet and codebook thematic analysis was used across the body of articles to synthesize the findings.

RESULTS: Aspects of PWLE engagement have been synthesized in 20 review articles reviewing 376 articles across psychiatry as a whole and several subpopulations, including youth mental health, dementia, neurodevelopmental disorders, people who use drugs, and forensic mental health. Information specific to family engagement is lacking. Barriers, facilitators, and positive impacts of PWLE engagement have been widely reported across domains of research, with a considerable degree of consensus across subpopulations. Some negative impacts and reporting challenges have also been identified.

DISCUSSION: This scoping review of reviews provides an overarching understanding of the current state of the science of PWLE and family engagement across psychiatry research. The findings can inform future research practices enriched with a genuine and effective engagement with PWLE and families.

PATIENT OR PUBLIC CONTRIBUTION: The authorship team includes members with intersecting lived experience and academic identities. Additional lived experience engagement was not conducted as part of this review.