Reflecting on the use of freedom of information requests in mental health research

Archard, Philip and Tangen, James and Giles, Emma and Lucas, Steven and Moore, Isobel and O'Reilly, Michelle and Murphy, David (2023) Reflecting on the use of freedom of information requests in mental health research. Social Work and Social Sciences Review, 23 (3).

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Abstract

Freedom of information (FoI) legislation has been represented as a valuable but underused means of generating otherwise unavailable data from public authorities in health and social care research. This article complements extant literature on the use of FoI requests for research intended to inform health and social care policy and improve the quality of practice. Reflections are provided on challenges and ethical considerations, drawing on relevant literature and the authors’ experience undertaking studies addressing different topics in mental health and child welfare using FoI requests as the primary source of data collection. The recommendations are practically orientated and aimed primarily at social work and mental health researchers who may have limited knowledge of how FoI requests might be used in their work but be curious about the application of this approach.

Item Type:	Article
Keywords:	data collection; ethics; freedom of information; mental health; research methodology; survey studies
Faculty / Department:	Faculty of Education and Social Sciences > School of Social Sciences
Depositing User:	Steven Lucas
Date Deposited:	06 Sep 2023 08:54
Last Modified:	06 Sep 2023 08:54
URI:	https://hira.hope.ac.uk/id/eprint/4010

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