{"title":"Tools used to measure the therapeutic relationship between staff and service users in adult mental health care: A scoping review","authors":"Jade Robinson , Ruth Abrams , Owen Price , Elizabeth Barley","doi":"10.1016/j.apnu.2025.01.007","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Background</h3><div>Therapeutic relationships are key to both service user recovery and the safety of staff and service users in adult mental health care. However, staff over-involvement (crossing professional boundaries including sexual and emotional exploitation) and under-involvement (staff disinterest, avoidance or neglect) is often a cause for concern within mental health care. Little is known about measuring and assessing over / under involvement. This scoping review provides a broad understanding of existing tools used to measure this in adult mental health care.</div></div><div><h3>Objective</h3><div>To explore what measures are used, and the characteristics of the identified measures, to understand the therapeutic relationship between staff and adult service users in mental health care settings.</div></div><div><h3>Design</h3><div>Scoping review.</div></div><div><h3>Setting(s)</h3><div>Adult mental health settings.</div></div><div><h3>Participants</h3><div>Service users and staff.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>This review is guided by Levac et al.'s six stage methodology of scoping review frameworks. The reporting of this review has been guided by the PRISMA-ScR.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>Of 2863 papers found, 23 were eligible for inclusion. The papers identified 14 scales. No tool specifically measured over- or under- involvement. Finally, data indicates that scales should be specific to their intended setting as the nature of therapeutic relationships may vary by setting.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><div>Definitions of therapeutic relationships and over- and under-involvement relevant to different settings are needed. There is a need to develop setting-specific scales to measure therapeutic involvement and definitions for over- and under- involvement. This would enhance care provided to service users and encourage staff members to challenge their own boundary setting practices.</div></div><div><h3>Registration</h3><div><span><span>https://osf.io/93dxp/</span><svg><path></path></svg></span>.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":55466,"journal":{"name":"Archives of Psychiatric Nursing","volume":"54 ","pages":"Pages 73-83"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2000,"publicationDate":"2025-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Archives of Psychiatric Nursing","FirstCategoryId":"3","ListUrlMain":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S088394172500007X","RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q1","JCRName":"NURSING","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Background
Therapeutic relationships are key to both service user recovery and the safety of staff and service users in adult mental health care. However, staff over-involvement (crossing professional boundaries including sexual and emotional exploitation) and under-involvement (staff disinterest, avoidance or neglect) is often a cause for concern within mental health care. Little is known about measuring and assessing over / under involvement. This scoping review provides a broad understanding of existing tools used to measure this in adult mental health care.
Objective
To explore what measures are used, and the characteristics of the identified measures, to understand the therapeutic relationship between staff and adult service users in mental health care settings.
Design
Scoping review.
Setting(s)
Adult mental health settings.
Participants
Service users and staff.
Methods
This review is guided by Levac et al.'s six stage methodology of scoping review frameworks. The reporting of this review has been guided by the PRISMA-ScR.
Results
Of 2863 papers found, 23 were eligible for inclusion. The papers identified 14 scales. No tool specifically measured over- or under- involvement. Finally, data indicates that scales should be specific to their intended setting as the nature of therapeutic relationships may vary by setting.
Conclusions
Definitions of therapeutic relationships and over- and under-involvement relevant to different settings are needed. There is a need to develop setting-specific scales to measure therapeutic involvement and definitions for over- and under- involvement. This would enhance care provided to service users and encourage staff members to challenge their own boundary setting practices.
期刊介绍:
Archives of Psychiatric Nursing disseminates original, peer-reviewed research that is of interest to psychiatric and mental health care nurses. The field is considered in its broadest perspective, including theory, practice and research applications related to all ages, special populations, settings, and interdisciplinary collaborations in both the public and private sectors. Through critical study, expositions, and review of practice, Archives of Psychiatric Nursing is a medium for clinical scholarship to provide theoretical linkages among diverse areas of practice.