Analysis of the first-person associations in mental health in Catalonia

Abstract

The answers to mental health issues have focused on the belief in diversity as an individual particularity, making individuals responsible for their will to change, while avoiding the issue of social determinants of behavior. In contrast, different movements have been put forth by consumers and ex-consumers of mental health services in Europe. They defend rights, solutions and proposals that are alternatives to traditional institutional solutions. This article is based on the first part of the author’s doctoral thesis, which discusses the role of the social work profession as a facilitator of the empowerment of those diagnosed with mental disorders. It addresses the first-person associative movement and the role that it has in Catalonia. This work concerns the subjects’ approach to reality and relies on the opinion of nine participants from the nine associations that make up Federació Venus. A qualitative methodology was used, and observation and in-depth interiews were the two tools used for collecting data. The analysis of the data leads to the conclusion that community work and relationship networks help to improve the quality of life of consumers of first-person associations, through mitigating the stigma and the inequality that can be caused by a diagnosis.