Background: Research on factors associated with individually defined recovery is limited. Several phases of recovery have been described in the literature. Individuals in these distinct phases have different characteristics and problems.
Aims: To identify classes of people with major psychiatric problems who have comparable profiles of individually defined recovery, to relate these classes to the phases of recovery as described by Spaniol, Wewiorsky, Gagne, and Anthony (2002), and to associate the classes to demographic and psychiatric characteristics, and health-related variables.
Methods: Data of 333 participants with major psychiatric problems were used. A latent class analysis was conducted on the mean scores of four proxy measures of recovery.
Results: Three well-defined classes were found that differed on the recovery measures. The classes differed significantly on variables corresponding to Spaniol's phases of recovery (Spaniol et al., 2002) and on health care utilization, health care needs and anxiety disorder, but not on demographic variables.
Conclusions: It is possible to identify classes of people with major psychiatric problems who have comparable profiles of individually defined recovery that seem to correspond to phases of recovery. More knowledge of the characteristics of people in different phases of recovery will contribute to more fine-tuned and recovery-oriented health care.