Voluntarism as Occupation

Abstract

An exploratory, single-case design was conducted to explore and describe the personal experience of a voluntarism occupation for one individual with schizophrenia who resides within the community. Non-participant observation and in-depth interviewing were utilized to explore the voluntarism experience of this individual. The findings suggest that voluntarism is both a meaningful and purposeful occupation for this individual. Volunteering is perceived to be a valued and socially acceptable occupation which allows for the individual to contribute to, and be a productive member of society. In addition, John (a pseudonym) perceived that his participation in a voluntarism occupation helped him to construct a socially acceptable identity and to maintain his preferred view of himself, as a competent individual, not as a mental health consumer. These findings suggest that participation in a voluntarism occupation may benefit some consumers of mental health services. While these findings were based upon the experiences of one person, occupational therapists are encouraged to consider voluntarism as therapy and as a means of enabling the occupational performance of their clients. Implications for further research are suggested. RÉSUMÉUne étude exploratoire basée sur une étude de cas a été menée afin d'examiner l'expéri-ence de bénévolat d'une personne atteinte de schizophrénie résidant dans la communauté. Les auteurs se sont basés sur des observations et des entrevues en profondeur pour étudier l'expérience de bénévolat de la personne. Les résultats suggèrent que le bénévolat est une occupation significative et utile pour cette personne. Le bénévolat est considéré comme une occupation valorisée et socialement acceptable, qui permet à une personne de participer et d'être productive dans la société. De plus, John (pseudonyme) perçoit que sa participation à cette occupation l'a aidé à se trouver une identité socialement acceptable et à se percevoir comme un individu compétent -une image de lui-même plus positive à son avis que celle d'un consommateur de services en santé mentale. Bien que ces résultats soient basés sur l'expérience d'une seule personne, les ergothérapeutes sont invités à considér-er le bénévolat comme une thérapie et un moyen de favoriser le rendement occupationnel de leurs clients. Les auteurs suggèrent également des pistes pour poursuivre les recherches.

Participation by doing: Social interaction in everyday activities among persons with schizophrenia

“…To seek others with similar experiences is a way to normalize one's situation by sharing it with others in the same situation (28,31). The activities performed outside the home environment could be the accepting social context within which persons with schizophrenia may feel competent and valued (33), leading to facilitating social interaction in activity performance. In Sweden it is necessary to be assessed by a public authority in order to receive support for everyday activities performed at home.…”

Achieving Balance In Everyday Life

“…Social support has a well-documented positive effect on the recipient as well as the provider of support (Bower & Greene, 1995;Rebeiro & Allen, 1998;Reid & Reid, 2000). Furthermore, recent studies have demonstrated that social support is not always positive (Reifman, Biernat, & Lang, 1991;Thomas, 1995).…”

Health‐enhancing effects of engaging in productive occupation: Experiences of young people with mental illness

“…Pascall and Hendey (2004) regarded work as an invaluable activity to assist young people with disabilities to move from a dependent to independent status. Additionally, studies by Kennedy-Jones et al (2005), Legault and Rebeiro (2001), Allen (1998), andStrong (1998) found that engaging in productive occupations positively transformed the identities of people who have experienced mental illness. In this study, engaging in productive occupation helped the participants develop an identity as a productive member of society that in turn boosted the participants' self-esteem because they believed that they were doing something worthwhile.…”

“…Employment was found to provide powerful protective factors against mental ill-health, such as valuable relationships, a sense of identity, and structure within participants' lives (Strong). Rebeiro and Allen (1998) used an exploratory single-case design, which revealed that voluntary work for one individual with schizophrenia contributed to his mental well-being. Similarly, voluntary work afforded the opportunity for the participant to contribute and be a productive member of society, which helped him construct a socially acceptable identity (Rebeiro & Allen).…”