Assessing Diversity and Inclusivity is the Next Frontier in Mental Health Recovery Narrative Research and Practice

Area of Science:

• Digital health
• Mental health interventions
• Narrative research

Background:

• Digital health interventions are increasingly used for mental health.
• Recorded mental health recovery narratives offer benefits like connection and validation.
• Potential harms include feelings of exclusion if narratives lack diversity.

Purpose of the Study:

• To address the lack of methods for assessing diversity and inclusivity in mental health recovery narrative collections.
• To propose and evaluate new assessment tools for narrative diversity and inclusivity.
• To highlight the importance of diversity and inclusivity in mental health recovery narratives.

Main Methods:

• Proposed one diversity assessment method using the Simpson Diversity Index.
• Proposed two inclusivity assessment methods based on demographic rates and arbitrary thresholds.
• Applied these methods to four narrative collections as a case study.

Main Results:

• The study evaluated the practicality and cultural adaptation needs of the proposed narrative assessment tools.
• Case study application demonstrated the utility of the proposed diversity and inclusivity metrics.
• Identified the need for refinements in the narrative assessment tools.

Conclusions:

• Assessing diversity and inclusivity is a critical next step in mental health recovery narrative research and practice.
• The proposed methods offer a starting point for evaluating narrative collection diversity.
• Further refinement is necessary to ensure the practicality and cultural relevance of assessment tools.