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SAMH is The Scottish Association for Mental Health

SAMH collaborates with academic staff and other researchers to undertake research into issues relating to mental health and mental health problems.

Here, you can find information about our research projects. If you are interested in collaborating with SAMH on a research project, contact us.

Up to the Job?

SAMH's study of people going through the Work Capability Assessment, the test for Employment and Support Allowance. The report found that almost three-quarters of respondents did not feel that the person conducting the assessment understood their condition.

Download Up to the Job?

What's it Worth Now?

Commissioned as part of our Dismissed? campaign for fairness in mental health and employability, What's it Worth Now? built on a previous SAMH report and found that the social and economic costs of mental health problems in Scotland are £10.7bn a year.

Download What's it Worth Now?

  SAMH Chrysalis: Learning Through Doing Reports

People and nature: learning through doing was an action research programme to identify successful approaches to involving people from excluded and disadvantaged groups in enjoying, learning about and caring for nature. Six community and voluntary sector groups undertook their own research project to explore what could help people from a range of backgrounds and circumstances to get closer to nature - and the benefits they experienced when they did.

SAMH's Chrysalis , a horticultural training and mental health service, carried out a focus group of service users to explore these issues. The two reports produced through this research are now available to download:

SAMH Chrysalis Focus Group: People & Nature, Learning Through Doing Report

SAMH Chrysalis Focus Group: People & Nature, Learning Through Doing SUMMARY

There's More to Me

Published in 2010 and funded by Greater Glasgow and Clyde NHS Board through the Glasgow Anti Stigma Partnership, There's More to Me was a peer research project looking at the beliefs, experiences and attitudes towards mental health of lesbian, gay and bisexual people. SAMH worked with LGB organisations to train peer researchers, who then held nine focus groups around Scotland. The research found that LGB people felt they were more likely than others to experience mental health problems, explored the reasons for this and made recommendations for change.

Click here to download the report.

Get Active: A SAMH Research Report

As part of our national programme on sport and physical activity, Get Active, SAMH surveyed 320 people on aspects of physical and mental health. The research found that people with mental health problems took part in less sporting activity than others and were less likely to meet government recommendations on fruit and vegetable consumption, more likely to be unable to afford to eat more fruit and vegetables, more likely to have sought help to reduce their alcohol consumption and more likely to smoke and to experience physical health problems.

Download Get Active.

Crunch Time for Scotland's Mental Health

SAMH surveyed 376 people on their experiences of the credit crunch and its effect on their mental health. The research found that those who had been affected by the credit crunch in at least one of nine specified ways were up to eight times more likely to have sought help for a mental health problem for the first time.

Download Crunch Time for Scotland's Mental Health.

A World to Belong to

This project was funded by the Big Lottery. It examined the social networks of 200 people with experience of mental health problems. It found that people with mental health problems were more likely to live alone, less likely to have a partner and less likely to be in employment.

Download A World to Belong to.

What's it Worth?

This research concluded that the social and economic costs of mental health problems in Scotland amounted to £8.6 billion in 2004/05, and called for greater investment in mental health.

Download What's it Worth?

All You Need to Know?

This groundbreaking research is based on the first Scotland-wide survey of service users' views on all aspects of psychiatric drugs. It includes extensive coverage of the prescription experience and summarises 1500 personal reports on 60 different psychiatric drugs.

Download All You Need to Know?

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