![Sample our Bioscience journals, sign in here to start your access, Latest two full volumes FREE to you for 14 days]({"type":"image" , "src" : "/sda/5925/TOC-Subject-Sample-2021-Bioscience.jpg"})
Abstract
The thrust of this paper is to argue that Habermasian theory can provide useful insight and understanding to inform participatory research in the area of forensic mental health care. Habermasian theory about communication, participation, and democracy is used to explore retrospectively the relatively free discussions that took place within a user-led research project evaluating forensic mental health care. We (the academics within the research project team) first describe the stages of the research project, outlining how it opened up space for discussion about service users' experiences of the forensic mental health care they had received. Habermas's distinction between ‘strategic action’ (orientated towards getting things done) and ‘communicative action’ (interaction orientated towards freely agreeing consensual understanding) is then explored in a re-analysis of users' accounts of the interactions they recalled having with service providers. We then offer an account of interactions between service user researchers presenting their work at academic forums and their audiences of service providers. In particular, we look at the communication that occurred and, again using Habermasian theory, consider the issues that arose about open discussion and similarities and differences between therapy and participatory research.
Acknowledgements
We would like to acknowledge the contribution of the service users in making this project such a success. We are also grateful to the National Forensic Mental Health R&D Programme for funding the research. Finally, we are indebted to the useful comments made by the three anonymous referees that helped us re-draft our paper into its present form.