Peer Support Activities for Veterans, Serving Members, and Their Families: Results of a Scoping Review

Jean-Michel Mercier, Fardous Hosseiny, Sara Rodrigues, Anthony Friio, Suzette Brémault-Phillips, Duncan M. Shields and Gabrielle Dupuis
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Jean-Michel Mercier: Atlas Institute for Veterans and Families, Ottawa, ON K1Z 7K4, Canada
Fardous Hosseiny: Atlas Institute for Veterans and Families, Ottawa, ON K1Z 7K4, Canada
Sara Rodrigues: Atlas Institute for Veterans and Families, Ottawa, ON K1Z 7K4, Canada
Anthony Friio: National Police Federation, Ottawa, ON K2P 1P1, Canada
Suzette Brémault-Phillips: Heroes in Mind Advocacy and Research Consortium, Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 2R3, Canada
Duncan M. Shields: Faculty of Medicine, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4, Canada
Gabrielle Dupuis: Atlas Institute for Veterans and Families, Ottawa, ON K1Z 7K4, Canada

IJERPH, 2023, vol. 20, issue 4, 1-22

Abstract: For many, including military veterans and their families, support between individuals with shared lived experiences, or peer support, has long been utilized as a way to support each other through many different challenges. Building on other reviews and guided by the seven domains of well-being in the Canadian veteran well-being framework, the objective of this paper is to describe and catalogue the nature of peer support activities and related outcomes in the veteran, serving member, and family member populations. A scoping review following the five stages outlined by Arksey and O’Malley was conducted; it was guided by the question: What is currently known about peer support activities for veterans, serving members, and their families that has been evaluated in the literature? In total, 101 publications from 6 different countries were included in this review and catalogued based on publication characteristics, participant information, peer support activity information, and peer information. Peer support activities have the potential to positively influence the well-being of veterans, serving members, and their families on a holistic level across multiple domains. This scoping review highlights the existing gaps in the literature and provides an important foundation for future research on peer support for these populations, specifically in the Canadian context.

Keywords: peer support; peer group; veterans; well-being; scoping review; social support; military personnel; military family (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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