The prevent duty: a critical examination of its application in mental health services and how it is spoken about by psychological therapists

Aims: The Prevent Statutory Duty forms part of the UK CONTEST counter-terrorism strategy. This review aimed to explore how research positioned mental healthcare in relation to the implementation of the Prevent Duty.

Methods: Assia, JSTOR, Google Scholar, PsychInfo, SAGE Journals, ScienceDirect, Social Policy and Practice, Taylor & Francis Online, Web of Science, and Wiley Online Library were searched systematically. Reviewed papers were selected based on inclusion and exclusion criteria. Ten papers were included in the final review, which used thematic synthesis.

Results: Mental healthcare has been linked to violent extremist behaviour in political discourses, despite the lack of empirical evidence for this. This has enabled Prevent to be integrated into the NHS with significant implications for mental healthcare. Mental health clinicians face problematic training, insistence to refer, ambiguity, and threats to the therapeutic space. This creates ethical concerns around institutional racism, abuse of power and professional lack of resistance.

Implications: This review highlights the lack of guidance and safe discussion spaces to address complex ethical situations presented by Prevent. More research is needed to understand Clinical Psychologist experiences including decision making, moral distress, and therapy offered, as well as institutional racism within the NHS.