title: Friends interventions in psychosis: a narrative review and call to action.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To highlight the importance of friendships to young people with psychosis, and the need for clinical interventions to help maintain peer relationships during illness. To structure a research agenda for developing evidence-based interventions with friends.
  
  
  METHODS
  An argument is developed through a narrative review of (i) the proven efficacy of family interventions, and (by comparison) a relative absence of friend-based interventions; (ii) the particular primacy of friendships and dating for young people, and typical effects of exclusion; and (iii) reduced friendship networks and dating experiences in psychosis, in pre-, during and post-psychosis phases, also links between exclusion and psychosis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We put forward a model of how poor friendships can potentially be a causal and/or maintenance factor for psychotic symptoms. Given this model, our thesis is that interventions aiming to maintain social networks can be hugely beneficial clinically for young people with psychosis. We give a case study to show how such an intervention can work.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We call for 'friends interventions' for young people with psychosis to be developed, where professionals directly work with a young person's authentic social group to support key friendships and maintain social continuity. An agenda for future research is presented that will develop and test theoretically driven interventions.
authors.affiliation: Early Intervention Service, West London Mental Health Trust, Middlesex, UK.
authors.forename: Chris
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Harrop
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Psychology, Royal Holloway, University of London, Surrey, UK.
authors.forename: Lyn
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Ellett
authors.affiliation: Early Intervention Service, South West London and St Georges Mental Health Trust, London, UK.
authors.forename: Rachel
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Brand
authors.affiliation: Spectrum Centre, University of Lancaster, Lancaster, UK.
authors.forename: Fiona
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Lobban
mesh_terms: D035843:Biomedical Research; D033062:Friends / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D011618:Psychotic Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology* / Q000628:therapy; D012944:Social Support; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: friends; intervention; model; peers; psychosis; social