On Our Own: Preliminary Findings from a Consumer-Run Service Model

A study of the role of a consumer-run drop-in center was conducted to study the role of the center in the lives of the consumers who utilize it, as well as to examine the particular symptomatology of this population of consumers. A total of 140 participants was assessed using the Community Oriented Programs Environment Scale (COPES) to measure the social environment of the drop-in center, and the Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI) to measure the psychological adjustment of the participants. It was hypothesized that greater symptom scores on the BSI would be predictive of increased discrepancy in perceptions of the real and ideal social environments at the drop-in center. Findings from this study showed that higher scores on the aggression subscale of the BSI were associated with greater perception of differences between the real and ideal environments at the drop-in center. The anger and aggression subscale of the COPES showed the greatest discrepancy between consumer perceptions of the actual and the ideal environments of the drop-in center. Additional research is needed to fully understand the relationship between consumer characteristics and the role of drop-in centers as providers of community-based mental health services.