In developed nations, interest in mental health services research is
increasing, which parallels an increased appreciation of the social and
financial costs of mental illness and a growing need to identify cost-
effective patterns of care. This paper examines common challenges in mental
health services research, such as adjudicating between competing mental
health priorities, designing research to better understand key elements in
successful interventions, defining treatment outcomes more broadly to
reflect consumer and family preference and quality of life, and linking
services to improve community care. Using the assertive community treatment
model as an example, the paper focuses on some of the differences between
services research and controlled clinical investigations and the
difficulties of looking inside the "black box" of effective
interventions.
Abstract Teaser