Aughterson, Henry;
(2022)
Social prescribing for mental health and well-being: mechanisms of action, active ingredients, and barriers & enablers to effective engagement.
Doctoral thesis (Ph.D), UCL (University College London).
Preview |
Text
Aughterson_10154892_thesis_redacted_article_pdf.pdf Download (6MB) | Preview |
Abstract
Social prescribing involves the referral of individuals to community activities, often to support their mental health and well-being. There is growing evidence on the efficacy of social prescribing to improve mental health, however less is known about how these groups bring about beneficial effects, or about barriers or enablers facing referrers. I addressed three distinct but complementary objectives. In Study 1 I conducted a review of ‘mechanisms of action’ underlying the impact of leisure activities on health, producing a multi-level ‘theory of change’ framework. I found leisure activities act through biological, psychological, social and behavioural mechanisms, to produce mental and physical health benefits. In Study 2, I used ethnographic methods to explore how four social prescribing community groups produced mental health benefits for individuals, often with severe mental health problems. Shared active ingredients included excellent facilitator inter-personal skills, high regularity of activities, creation of a safe space, high affordability/accessibility, and shared lived experience of mental health problems. Shared mechanisms were increased purpose/meaning, experience of pleasure/joy, increased social support, increased structure/routine, formation of friendships and reduced loneliness, and enhanced sense of community and belonging. Study 3 used qualitative interviews to explore barriers and enablers for GPs in engaging with social prescribing for individuals with mental health problems, mapping them onto the Capability, Opportunity, Motivation-Behaviour (COM-B) change model. My findings highlighted the need for increased formal GP training on how to engage with social prescribing effectively, and the benefits of active inter-organisational partnerships and hand-holding opportunities to accompany individuals to initial sessions. My findings support the conceptualisation of social prescribing as a complex intervention. Social prescribing however is not a single, clearly defined intervention and different community groups/activities will involve different mechanisms and active ingredients. In its broadest sense social prescribing reflects a more salutogenic, personalised, biopsychosocial and less individualised approach towards mental health.
| Type: | Thesis (Doctoral) |
|---|---|
| Qualification: | Ph.D |
| Title: | Social prescribing for mental health and well-being: mechanisms of action, active ingredients, and barriers & enablers to effective engagement |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | Copyright © The Author 2022. Original content in this thesis is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0) Licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/). Any third-party copyright material present remains the property of its respective owner(s) and is licensed under its existing terms. Access may initially be restricted at the author’s request. |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Population Health Sciences > Institute of Epidemiology and Health UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10154892 |
Archive Staff Only
 |
View Item |
