Can theatre successfully disseminate messages about public involvement in research on domestic violence?

Background. Patient and public involvement (PPI) and dissemination of research findings are the key parts of the pathway to research impact; however traditional approaches often fail to engage non-academic audiences. Creative methods such as co-developed plays can be effective ways of making research process and findings more engaging and accessible to the public. Members of a PPI group on a study about mindfulness for women with a history of domestic abuse co-developed and performed a play about their experiences. This study aimed to evaluate the impact, acceptability, and safety of a co-developed play in publicising PPI and findings from research on domestic violence.

Methods. We conducted a mixed-methods study with the play team and audience. We collected 20 quantitative and 56 qualitative survey responses from audience members, carried out 4.25 hours of observations of play performances, and interviewed 7 audience members and 8 play team members. Data was analysed using the framework method and descriptive statistics, with ‘following a thread’ approach to integrate qualitative and quantitative findings in themes answering our study aim.

Findings. The ‘Value’ theme summarised the plays’ impact on audience understanding, potential mechanisms of impact, and its effectiveness in depth over breadth of dissemination. The ‘re-traumatization’ theme described potential harms of the play, the risks of re-traumatizing actors and distressing audiences. The ‘reducing the risks’ theme summarised ways of reducing these risks of harm.

Conclusions. A play co-developed and performed by study PPI members raised awareness of domestic violence. However, there were divergent opinions on its value at disseminating messages about PPI in research on sensitive subjects. The value of the play for research dissemination was linked to its ability to emotionally engage the public, and to its accessibility. Implementing strategies to reduce the risk of retraumatizing audience members and the project team is recommended.