Appreciative inquiry: a research tool for mental health services.
Appreciative inquiry (AI) provides an alternative approach to the inquisitional style of uncovering "what went wrong and who is at fault" to instead "what can be done to make things better," thus creating an environment that enables one to discover (investigate), dream (what could have been done instead), design (what needs to be done to bring about change), and deliver/ destiny (working with a whole of health and community approach to obtain the positive outcomes for mental health consumers). AI is transformational in nature and provides a way of viewing organizations from an enabling perspective. This article discusses the concept of AI, highlights opportunities and challenges that may be encountered, and explores the possibility of applying the AI concept to mental health research/inquiry.
Julia L
JL
Hennessy
Frances
F
Hughes
D006302:Health Services Research / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D008605:Mental Health Services; D017146:Models, Organizational; D010043:Outcome and Process Assessment, Health Care / Q000379:methods; D011787:Quality of Health Care