Developing Community-Based Arts Methods in Mental Health Recovery : a Critical Participatory Action Research Influenced Development Task

Abstract

Mental health recoverees are discriminated against and suffer from societal and internalised stigma, which can affect their ability to seek out services, to have their psychological and physical needs met. Social justice and the capabilities approach theories contributed to this thesis, which asserts that seeking social justice is a social services work imperative and is central to empowerment work. One way of promoting social justice is to support the autonomy of those in positions of disadvantage. Current research suggests that participating in community-based arts groups can play a central role in recovery and autonomy support for mental health recoverees.

The objective of this Bachelor’s thesis was to facilitate the development of the community-based arts groups taking place at Mental Health Association Helmi. Helmi provides low-threshold services for adults in mental health recovery, in a community setting. They organise events, groups, excursions, volunteer peer support, and have an open-to-all living room. For the duration of the thesis, the thesis author was conducting an internship at Helmi.

The development task used critical participatory action research (CPAR) influenced methodology, whilst utilising arts activities to support the process. CPAR aims to change unjust social practices, by galvanising those who take part in them, concurrently working to facilitate empowerment and improve practices, making it a suitable method for this development task. The thesis author invited participants of Helmi’s community-based arts groups to attend workshops, where the existing workshop practices were examined. The development task took place over four workshop sessions in the spring of 2025. Whilst the workshops yielded several ideas for developing the groups, and served to highlight the importance of these groups to the participants, a central development aim around which to base a CPAR project was not selected. Engaging in critical reflection on the process of the development task allowed the thesis author to add to the social services field information about the practicalities of facilitating empowerment in the research context.