Perceived assistance in pursuing personal goals and personal recovery among mental health consumers across housing services

Personal goals/plans play a central role in personal recovery and psychiatric rehabilitation of persons with mental illnesses. Yet, few studies have explored whether perceiving practitioners' assistance towards the pursuit of goals are associated with personal recovery and other favorable rehabilitation outcomes. A total of 2121 mental health consumers, of which 1222 use supported-housing services and 899 use group-home services, completed self-report questionnaires as part of a larger quality-assurance study conducted during the years 2013-2014. Eighty percent of participants living in supported-housing and 72% living in group-homes reported having personal goals/plans for the forthcoming year. Furthermore, their type of goals was different. Irrespective of the type of goal or housing service, participants who reported having goals/plans (compared with those who did not) showed higher levels of personal recovery and more favorable psychosocial outcomes. Regression analyses showed that perceiving professional staff members (but not para-professionals) as assisting in pursuing goals/plans was positively associated with personal recovery. This study empirically validates the value of having personal goals and professionals' assistance in pursuing goals/plans in regards to personal recovery. We propose that recovery-oriented services should seek to enhance goal setting and goal-pursuit, and to train practitioners in these areas.