title: Harnessing the potential of community-based participatory research approaches in bipolar disorder.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Despite the rapid growth in the sophistication of research on bipolar disorder (BD), the field faces challenges in improving quality of life (QoL) and symptom outcomes, adapting treatments for marginalized communities, and disseminating research insights into real-world practice. Community-based participatory research (CBPR)-research that is conducted as a partnership between researchers and community members-has helped address similar gaps in other health conditions. This paper aims to improve awareness of the potential benefits of CBPR in BD research.
  
  
  METHODS
  This paper is a product of the International Society for Bipolar Disorders (ISBD) Taskforce on Community Engagement which includes academic researchers, healthcare providers, people with lived experience of BD, and stakeholders from BD community agencies. Illustrative examples of CBPR in action are provided from two established centres that specialize in community engagement in BD research: the Collaborative RESearch Team to study psychosocial issues in BD (CREST.BD) in Canada, and the Spectrum Centre for Mental Health Research in the United Kingdom.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We describe the philosophy of CBPR and then introduce four core research areas the BD community has prioritized for research: new treatment approaches, more comprehensive outcome assessments, tackling stigma, and enhanced understanding of positive outcomes. We then describe ways in which CBPR is ideal for advancing each of these research areas and provide specific examples of ways that CBPR has already been successfully applied in these areas. We end by noting potential challenges and mitigation strategies in the application of CBPR in BD research.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We believe that CBPR approaches have significant potential value for the BD research community. The observations and concerns of people with BD, their family members, and supports clearly represent a rich source of information. CBPR approaches provide a collaborative, equitable, empowering orientation to research that builds on the diversity of strengths amongst community stakeholders. Despite the potential merits of this approach, CBPR is as yet not widely used in the BD research field, representing a missed opportunity.
authors: Mood Disorders Centre, Department of Psychiatry, University of British Columbia, 2255 Wesbrook Mall, Vancouver, BC, V6T 2A1, Canada. erin.michalak@ubc.ca.
authors: Erin E
authors: EE
authors: Michalak
authors: Spectrum Centre for Mental Health Research, Division of Health Research, Faculty of Health and Medicine, Lancaster University, Lancaster, UK. s.jones7@lancaster.ac.uk.
authors: Steven
authors: S
authors: Jones
authors: Spectrum Centre for Mental Health Research, Division of Health Research, Faculty of Health and Medicine, Lancaster University, Lancaster, UK. f.lobban@lancaster.ac.uk.
authors: Fiona
authors: F
authors: Lobban
authors: Spectrum Centre for Mental Health Research, Division of Health Research, Faculty of Health and Medicine, Lancaster University, Lancaster, UK. g.perezalgorta@lancaster.ac.uk.
authors: Guillermo Perez
authors: GP
authors: Algorta
authors: Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada. sjb@psych.ubc.ca.
authors: Steven J
authors: SJ
authors: Barnes
authors: IMPACT Strategic Research Centre, Faculty of Health, Deakin University, Geelong, Australia. l.berk@deakin.edu.au.|Department of Psychiatry, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC, Australia. l.berk@deakin.edu.au.
authors: Lesley
authors: L
authors: Berk
authors: IMPACT Strategic Research Centre, Deakin University, Melbourne, Australia. mikebe@barwonhealth.org.au.|Department of Psychiatry, Orygen Research Centre, and the Florey Institute for Neuroscience and Mental Health, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC, Australia. mikebe@barwonhealth.org.au.
authors: Michael
authors: M
authors: Berk
authors: Centre for Inclusion and Citizenship, School of Social Work, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada. rachelle.hole@ubc.ca.
authors: Rachelle
authors: R
authors: Hole
authors: Department of Education, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada. saralapsley@hotmail.com.
authors: Sara
authors: S
authors: Lapsley
authors: Crazy for Life Co., Sechelt, BC, Canada. victoria@victoriamaxwell.com.
authors: Victoria
authors: V
authors: Maxwell
authors: Departments of Psychiatry and Psychology, Queen's University, Kingston, ON, Canada. roumen.milev@queensu.ca.
authors: Roumen
authors: R
authors: Milev
authors: The Bipolar Expert Series, Alpine, CA, USA. themcman@me.com.
authors: John
authors: J
authors: McManamy
authors: Faculty of Life and Social Sciences, Swinburne University of Technology, Hawthorn, Australia. gwm@swin.edu.au.
authors: Greg
authors: G
authors: Murray
authors: Department of Psychiatry, Health Sciences Center, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM, USA. mtohen@gmail.com.
authors: Mauricio
authors: M
authors: Tohen
authors: Department of Social Work and Social Administration, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China. samsont@hku.hk.
authors: Samson
authors: S
authors: Tse
authors: Bipolar Connection Clinic, Mexico City, Mexico. msanchezdecarmona@mac.com.
authors: Manuel
authors: M
authors: Sanchez de Carmona
authors: Department of Psychology, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA. sljohnson@berkeley.edu.
authors: Sheri L
authors: SL
authors: Johnson
keywords: Bipolar disorder; Community-based participatory research; Knowledge translation; Research methods