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The purpose of this paper is twofold: first, assess the effects of the peers’ recovery narratives on service users’ perceived mental health recovery; and second, explore various stakeholders’ perspectives on the program, specifically its facilitators and barriers.

The study used a convergent mixed-method design. First, a pre-test post-test design was used with service users to evaluate the peer recovery narrative program. They completed the Recovery Assessment Scale (RAS) and participated in qualitative interviews that explored perspectives on their mental health recovery before and after the program. Second, a cross-sectional design was used to explore stakeholder groups’ perspectives on the recovery narrative program immediately after listening to the narratives.

While findings show that there was no statistical difference between scores on the RAS before and after the peer narratives, thematic analysis revealed a change in service users’ understanding of recovery post-narratives. Other stakeholder groups confirmed this change. However, some healthcare professionals questioned the universal positive effects of the peer recovery narrative program on service users. Stakeholders agreed that beyond effects of the peer recovery narrative program on service users, there were also positive effects among the peers themselves.

To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first Canadian study, and one of the first studies to rely on mixed-methods and various stakeholder groups to evaluate the impact of peer recovery narratives on service users. The research, thus, fills a knowledge gap on peer recovery narratives.

The purpose of this paper is to understand how daily life reflects the recovery journeys of individuals with serious mental illness (SMI) living independently in the community.

The go-along technique, which blends participant observation and interviewing, was used to gather data from 19 individuals with SMI living in supported housing. Data were analyzed through the CHIME framework of personal recovery, which includes social connectedness, hope and optimism, identity, meaning in life, and empowerment.

Applying the CHIME framework to qualitative data reveals the multiple ways in which everyday experiences, within and beyond formal mental healthcare environments, shapes personal recovery processes.

Combining novel methods and conceptual frameworks to lived experiences sharpens extant knowledge of the active and non-linear aspects to personal recovery. The role of the researcher must be critically considered when using go-along methods.

Practitioners working with this population should account for the role of socially supportive and financially accessible spaces and activities that support the daily work of recovery beyond the context of formal care and services.

This study utilizes an innovative method to illustrate the crucial role of daily and seemingly banal experiences in fostering or hindering personal recovery processes. It is also the one of the first studies to comprehensively apply the CHIME framework to qualitative data in order to understand the recovery journeys of individuals with SMI living in supported housing.

The purpose of this paper is to review the literature in terms of the conceptualization of the recovery concept among cultural and ethnic minorities drawing on the connectedness, hope and optimism about the future; Identity, meaning in life, empowerment (CHIME) framework; highlight the cultural adaptations of supported housing – a prominent recovery-oriented intervention, as it was implemented in a multicultural western country; and delineate the future implications for research, policy and practice in regard to mental health recovery interventions for cultural and ethnic minorities.

An online search was performed to identify recent empirical studies published in English in peer-reviewed journals.

Included studies confirmed what the authors of CHIME had initially reported: spirituality and support networks could act as enablers or inhibitors in the recovery process of mental health services users with diverse cultural backgrounds. The stigma surrounding mental illness is a key challenge that skews the recovery experience. Other cultural-specific factors include linguistic peculiarities of the maternal language and gender. The cultural adaptation of a recovery-oriented intervention was feasible and effective but also challenging.

By studying the cultural variations of mental health recovery, the intention is to inform mental health practitioners and other key stakeholders of the distinct cultural components that influence the recovery process, thereby promoting the development of culturally sensitive, accessible and effective recovery-oriented interventions. It is worth noting that providing culturally appropriate mental health services could be viewed as a human right issue for minority groups.