Psychosocial Research

Our current research focus is primarily suicide prevention. Two major studies are in progress exploring the insights of people who have experienced suicidal feelings, including those who have attempted suicide, as well as the perceptions of people close to those who have attempted or completed suicide.  We have received funding for these projects from the James Wentworth-Stanley Memorial Fund and the BIG Lottery Fund.
Download the Press Release that announced the BIG Lottery suicide prevention project.

A new focus for suicide prevention: The aim is to develop an understanding of the process of suicide from the perspectives of those who have attempted suicide and those who have been bereaved by suicide. We hope to uncover insights into the process of suicide that will help the general public, not just professionals, to take part in preventing suicide by recognising and responding to the signs that someone is suicidal. We will begin recruiting to this study early in 2011. Click here to find out more.

The experience of suicidal feelings: The aim of this study is to get as close as possible to what it is like to feel suicidal, by asking those who have experienced suicidal feelings to describe those experiences to us in depth. We will use the results of the research to help develop an empathy-based approach to suicide prevention. Click here to find out more.

Understanding service user treatment choices: This study explores the choices people diagnosed with schizophrenia or bipolar disorder make about following their recommended treatments, both medical and non-medical. The aim is to inform a better understanding of those choices, and the ways in which they can be supported. Click here to find out more.

Understanding Self-harm: For some years, SANE has drawn attention to the need for people who self-harm to be given understanding and help. In 2004, the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence published the first treatment guideline on self-harm, revealing 170,000 people a year attended A&E departments with many being sent away with no proper help.

SANE responded to the report, drawing on calls to the helpline in growing numbers reporting self-harm in increasingly violent ways. Our concerns were broadcast locally and nationally and our statement carried by The Independent. SANE undertook a major qualitative research study collecting data via an online survey from 946 anonymous people aged 12 to 59. The data charts self-harm behaviour from first episodes through to full recovery. Download the overview of SANE research and findings. Click here to take part in our ongoing research into self-harm.

The research team has gained recognition and respect in professional and academic circles for delivering innovative research that tackles difficult issues connected with mental illness. Recent projects include:

• Choice in the English Mental Health System: what ‘choice’ really means for service users and health professionals in mental health treatment.
• Pro-ana websites: Surveying the ‘benefits’ of  pro-eating disorder websites

Click here to access the full research library of SANE’s psychosocial research projects.