Tell us! In your opinion, what questions about mental illness should science take up?

What is the project about?

With the first “Tell Us!” crowdsourcing initiative for research questions, the Ludwig Boltzmann Society pioneered this approach in Europe. The aim was to involve people outside academia in generating research questions for the first time. People affected by mental illness, family members, and experts were invited to submit open questions relating to mental health and mental illness.

Who participates in the project?

patients; family members; carers; doctors; therapists; representatives of patient organisations; representatives from the fields of psychiatry, psychotherapy, psychiatric nursing and clinical psychology

How are participants involved in the project?

For 11 weeks — from 16 April to 6 July 2015 — patients, family members, nurses and carers, doctors, and therapists were invited to submit experiences, observations, and unanswered questions relating to mental illness via an online platform. More than 400 high-quality contributions concerning the future investigation of mental illness were submitted. The submitted contributions were subsequently assigned to 17 main themes and 7 research areas.

From 29 September to 18 October 2015, registered participants were able to vote on the platform as part of a community vote to determine which of the seven research areas appeared most urgent. Each participant had the opportunity to vote for two of the seven research areas.

Following the community vote, in which 217 people took part, the research areas were assessed by an international expert jury consisting of representatives from patient organisations and experts from the fields of psychiatry, psychotherapy, psychiatric nursing, and clinical psychology. The task of the jury was to evaluate the novelty of the questions and themes, as well as their relevance for research and society. During the jury deliberations, it became apparent that all seven research areas contained elements and research questions relating to children and young people. Consequently, during the jury session and on the recommendation of the subject experts, the additional research area “Mental Health of Children and Young People” was introduced.

What are the results of the project?

Based on the crowdsourcing results, community voting and the expert jury’s deliberations, three research areas were identified as priorities:

1. the mental health of children and young people,
2. the destigmatisation of mental illness, and
3. health services research relating to mental illness.

To translate this outcome into concrete research activities, the two Ludwig Boltzmann research groups D. O.T – The Open Door and Village - How to raise the village to raise the child" were established.

What publications have emerged from the project?

• Process documentation in English (download)
• Process documentation in German (download)

Project lead

Ludwig Boltzmann Gesellschaft, Open Innovation in Science Center

puevfgvnar.tevyy@yot.np.ng