Where Does Value Lie in Peer Support? An Exploratory Discussion of the Theories and Methods Underpinning Effective Research in Peer Support

Abstract

A literature review was undertaken in 2019 to review research into the effectiveness of peer support in chronic disease self-management. As with an earlier literature review, we found the results disappointing due to poor reporting and poor research design. Lack of information on training of peer supporters, unrealistically short timeframes to produce changes in health behaviors, and lack of any theoretical underpinning of the research design contributed to rating randomized controlled trials as poor to medium quality evidence. At the same time, systematic reviews consider peer support as effective, arguing that improved research design and evaluation would demonstrate this. This article discusses the need to examine more closely the contribution of peer support to chronic disease care as well as considering how research methods might more closely reflect that contribution and provide better evidence of the value of peer support to both participants and the health system.

Internet-Based Medical Service Use and Eudaimonic Well-Being of Urban Older Adults: A Peer Support and Technology Acceptance Model

“…As the average life expectancy of China's female population is higher than that of men, the aging degree of the female population is also higher than that of men. In the last four decades, female older populations over 65 and over 80 have consistently been greater than the male older populations in these age brackets with a comprehensive ratio of 58.19:41.81 [40]. The sex ratio of this study sample was also in line with the current normal proportion of the older population.…”

“…In the research on the well-being of older adults, social support, health status, intergenerational support, and pension services are considered to be the determinants [33,38,39]. Peer support, as an essential part of individual social support, can provide external support for individuals, and it exerts many functions such as emotional communication, resolution of psychological conflict, solutions to daily confusion, and improvement in the learning of skills [40]. Although little research has explored the relationship between peer support and the well-being of older adults, the above-mentioned benefits of peer support led us to believe that it has a positive effect on the well-being of the elderly.…”

Bridging the gap between science and indigenous cosmologies: Rheumatic Heart Disease Champions4Change

“…Chronic disease peer support programs have demonstrated a wide range of benefits including high levels of satisfaction by participants, increased health knowledge, improved social support and social connectedness, emotional wellbeing and reductions For full list of author affiliations and declarations see end of paper in patient care time required by health professionals. [1][2][3] Within Australia, Aboriginal community and family support programs have been implemented across diverse care settings and health conditions including cancer, diabetes, asthma, child and maternal health and drug and alcohol and sexual health. [4][5][6][7] Among Aboriginal people in the Northern Territory, where language diversity is amongst the highest in the world, there is a real need to provide accessible information and more support for ARF and RHD.…”

What Makes Intentional Unidirectional Peer Support for Homeless People Work? An Exploratory Analysis Based on Clients’ and Peer Workers’ Perceptions

“…Besides the notion that the effectiveness of IUPS within homeless populations is still an under-researched area, the utilization of RCTs is being questioned within the field as an appropriate method to investigate peer support ( Walker & Peterson, 2021 ). Outcomes relating to the participant’s long term personal recovery, such as empowerment and resilience, are difficult to grasp with a quantitative questionnaire, and were thus generally not included in previous RCT studies ( Walker & Peterson, 2021 ). By focusing on clients’ and peer workers’ experiences and narratives, qualitative interviews with both these groups can provide this essential in-depth information from each of their perspectives.…”

“…By focusing on clients’ and peer workers’ experiences and narratives, qualitative interviews with both these groups can provide this essential in-depth information from each of their perspectives. Qualitative interviews are also useful to comprehend the mechanisms that make IUPS, a complex intervention, work, and induce change (e.g., getting into the “black box” of the intervention) ( Greenhalgh & Papoutsi, 2018 ; Mannell & Davis, 2019 ; Walker & Peterson, 2021 ). Through qualitative interviews clients and peer workers can provide insight into the elements that define and are considered critical for IUPS, called critical elements, and the mechanisms establishing a link between these critical elements and the outcomes, shedding light on what makes IUPS work.…”