Research and Theory

Many aspects of the conference program focus on developments in theory and research about mental health promotion and the prevention of mental and behavioral disorders. It is important to highlight the way research and theory work together in structuring interventions for promoting mental health, preventing mental illness and in producing specific health and social outcomes.

As a multi-disciplinary area of practice, mental health promotion and disorder prevention build on well-established theories of human development and behavioral, social, political and environmental change. Theory and research are invariably connected and for the benefit of the field should be advanced in an explicit manner.

Clear articulation of program theory informs the conceptualization, design, delivery and evaluation of successful interventions. Acknowledged or not, theories shape our thinking, guiding our understanding of mental health and mental illness. They affect the data we collect and the interpretation of evidence, as well as the development of interventions for mental health promotion and disorder prevention. Theories are tested against empirical evidence, and the “dialogue between ideas and evidence” can assume many configurations.