Lemons to lemonade: Identity integration in researchers with lived experience of psychosis

Objectives: Lived experience input is becoming recognised as vital to developing and delivering high quality research. However, employment as a lived experience researcher can create identity conflict, which can undermine well-being. In this study, we explored the nuances of both social identification and identity integration processes in individuals with lived experience of psychosis employed in research. Design: Qualitative study using a semi-structured interview format and thematic analyses. Methods: Fifteen individuals were recruited, all employed in research in UK mental health care trusts or universities. All participants identified as having experience of psychosis and mental health care support and worked as a researcher, in a paid or voluntary capacity. Results: Two overarching categories were identified in the data, the basis for social identification and the complexity of identity integration within an academic context; specific themes were identified within each of these categories. The data support the value of social identification within this group, although based on shared human experience or being a survivor rather than diagnosis. Challenges to identity integration included conflict between subjectivity and the scientific method and structural stigma. Strong values around using distressing experiences for the benefit of others both furnished self-growth and connected people in groups. A superordinate identity such as ‘useful person’ facilitated the integration of lived experience and researcher-based social identities within the self. Conclusions: Researching this unique group advances understanding of how social identity forms and functions in a stigmatising context. Findings support the generalisability of the cognitive-developmental model of social identity integration.