Is it Harmful to Take Part in Psychiatric Research?
Would you want to take part in research that assessed the state of your mental health? Would you want to answer questions about child abuse or other traumatic experiences?
Most research in the mental health area will ask participants about their current or past mental health, or experiences that are related to mental health. These questions may be intrusive or cover sensitive topics, and intuitively may seem distressing to answer.
It’s worth keeping in mind though that all research conducted by organizations such as universities and hospitals will have undergone an independent ethical approval process. This process checks things like whether the research has benefits that outweigh the risks to participants, that participants must give consent before they can take part, and that they are informed of what the study is about, what will happen to the data they give, how to drop out of the study if they wish, and so on.
Many studies are also required to provide resources where participants can seek emotional support, if needed. The old days where participants were easily deceived or given painful shocks are long gone!
Researchers have studied whether taking part in psychiatric research is distressing to participants, and results may be surprising to some. There have been over 40 of these studies. Most of these studies used interviews to ask about mental health, or sometimes paper-and-pencil questionnaires. They show that a minority of participants (usually less than 10%) do report some distress after taking part in psychiatric research. This was most common in studies that researched traumatic experiences (e.g. having a still-born child). Participants reported emotions such as stress, embarrassment, depression, anxiety, and discomfort. However, this distress did not seem to last long. For example, one study showed that 1-2 weeks later, most participants said that they felt better than immediately after the research interview and more than half said they even felt better than before they had taken part in the study. The studies also showed that participants more commonly experienced positive reactions to the research, such as finding it enjoyable, helpful, interesting, or a positive experience. Interestingly, many participants who found it distressing still thought their participation was helpful or worthwhile.
So to summarize, taking part in psychiatric research may be upsetting for a minority, but many also find it a positive experience. Researchers aim to minimize the risk of harm or discomfort to their participants, and are usually very grateful for their help!
Amy Morgan is a PhD candidate from the University of Melbourne, Australia. She has published 20 peer-reviewed papers in mental health and is the creator of Mood Memos http://www.moodmemos.com, amy@moodmemos.com. Mood Memos are free emails with info and advice to help improve mild depression symptoms. Visit the website today to start receiving Mood Memos.