Goal planning in mental health service delivery: A systematic integrative review
Open accessAbstract
Introduction: Goal planning is routinely employed in mental health service delivery to identify priorities for treatment and support the achievement and evaluation of outcomes. Previous systematic reviews of the literature have focused on the use of goal planning in a range of physical and cognitive disability settings, but there is a lack of information regarding how goal planning is used in mental healthcare. Aims: This systematic integrative review aimed to understand the types of goals, effectiveness of goal planning, the experience of goal planning and barriers and facilitators to effective goal planning in mental healthcare settings. Methods: Five databases were systematically searched using key terms related to mental health AND goal planning. The search was supplemented through citation chaining. Due to the heterogeneity of the studies, a narrative synthesis approach to data analysis was undertaken. Results: Fifty-four studies were identified through the search of the literature following the PRISMA guidelines. Data was systematically extracted and thematically organized. There was a high level of heterogeneity among the studies, originating from a range of countries and with diverse characteristics and focus. Four themes emerged from the data analysis and included: (i) goal planning as a central aspect of interventions; (ii) types of goals planned; (iii) factors that influenced goal planning and/or attainment; and (iv) collaboration and concordance in goal planning. Conclusion: This review found some support for the use of goal planning to improve outcomes in mental healthcare although there was no identified standardized approach to the use of goal planning. Individualized, recovery-oriented and collaborative goal planning was recommended but not always used in practice. Further research to understanding the most appropriate skills and training needed to support collaborative and effective goal planning is needed. Systematic review registration: [https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/], identifier [CRD42020220595].
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The BEL, AOI and P2P interventions utilize either group or individual session formats that can be modified or adapted to individuals' needs and preferences, and all include homework or activity experimentation based on personal goals.
“The BEL, AOI and P2P interventions utilize either group or individual session formats that can be modified or adapted to individuals’ needs and preferences. They also all include homework or activity experimentation based on personal goals, aligned with current knowledge regarding the transference of choices made in therapeutic settings to the real-world, including the importance of ongoing”
From Contributions of a time use perspective in community mental health practice: a scoping review (2024) · cites this paper as [81]
The Results (section 3.1; page unavailable) describe a study in which therapeutic homework tasks were compared with individuals’ goals, supporting the general connection between homework and personal goals. The review does not identify BEL, AOI or P2P or establish their session formats, adaptability, or whether all three include homework or activity experimentation. (LLM, conf=0.78)
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Contributions of a time use perspective in community mental health practice: a scoping review
Fossey, E., Doroud, N., Harvey, C. A., Dun, C., Hitch, D., Farnworth, L., & Krupa, T. (2024) · Frontiers in Psychiatry · doi:10.3389/fpsyt.2024.1461705 · Cited by 5 · see citing works
- Authors
- Stewart, V., McMillan, S. S., Hu, J., Ng, R., El-Den, S., O’Reilly, C., & Wheeler, A. J.
- Affiliations
- Griffith University (AU)
- The University of Sydney (AU)
- Corresponding author
- Stewart, Victoria
- Venue
- Frontiers in Psychiatry
- Publisher
- Frontiers Media SA
- Published
- 2022-12-19
- Volume
- 13
- Pages
- 1057915-1057915
- ISSN
- 1664-0640 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC9807176
- OpenAlex
- W4313389649
- Cited by
- 30
- References
- 76
- Citations by year
- 2026: 11 · 2025: 8 · 2024: 7 · 2023: 4
- FWCI
- 0.79
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- gold
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Frontiers in Psychiatry (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
- Griffith Research Online (submittedVersion, cc-by)
- Funders
- Griffith University
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Psychiatric care and mental health services
- Health Sciences › Health Professions › General Health Professions › Mental Health and Patient Involvement
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Psychotherapy Techniques and Applications
- Keywords
- goal planning, mental health service delivery, treatment goals, recovery-oriented care, collaborative goal setting, barriers and facilitators, individualized care, mental health interventions, outcome measurement
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