An empirical conceptualization of the recovery orientation

Objective: The recovery movement is having a growing impact on policy for people with severe mental illness. The empirical literature on the recovery orientation, however, is scant, and no empirical conceptualization of recovery has been published. Method: We identified items reflecting recovery themes and measuring aspects of subjective experience, and used principle components and confirmatory factor analyses to develop an empirical conceptualization of the recovery orientation, using data from a large, systematic study of schizophrenia. Results: We identified four domains of the recovery orientation: empowerment, hope and optimism, knowledge and life satisfaction. Conclusions: We propose here an initial approach to measuring and conceptualizing recovery attitudes. We also suggest that the evidence-based practice (EBP) movement may help to identify interventions that promote the recovery orientation and help to advance recovery attitudes. We suggest that there is a bidirectional relationship between recovery attitudes and the positive clinical outcomes that are the goals of EBPs. Through the use of empirically derived conceptualizations of recovery, EBPs can provide a mechanism for identifying treatments that promote the recovery orientation. The conceptualization proposed here can, thus, serve as a tool to assess changes in recovery attitudes during participation in specific EBPs. (c) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.