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In distinction to research on ‘peer work’ within mental health systems, crisis support in grass-roots organisations of people with psychiatric experience has been researched to a far lesser extent. The topic of our study was the work of a German self-advocacy and crisis respite project that has been operating for 25 years. The purpose was to (a) understand the project’s core principles within its particular history and development context, and (b) to assess the value of this approach against its own criteria of what constitute good quality responses to psychosocial crises. This was a qualitative exploration with a collaborative-participatory approach. The inquiry was divided into exploratory, evaluation and developmental phases. The methods included in-depth interviews with project workers and former residents (26) and seven focus groups as a means of validation and joint interpretation of the findings. The work of Bochum respite de-professionalises crisis support, approaching it as integral to collective efforts aimed at social justice. The main features of crisis support include a fluid and changeable division of roles, individual definition of goals and achievements, accessibility and adaptability of support, as well as a focus on both personal and collective responsibility. The findings expand the understanding of human crisis beyond mental health and demonstrate community potential to work against psychocentrism and put forward a wide range of responses. We reflect on how the research approach itself can strengthen the transformative potential of grassroots initiatives rather than ready them for co-option within mental health care systems.

Politicising crisis support: learning from autonomous self-organising in Bochum, Germany