Peerstøtte: mellem abstrakte forventninger og konkret praksis

The use of peer support is on the rise in Danish social psychiatry and in recent years has become an outspoken political priority. The intent, as well as the expectation, is that the presence of people with concrete personal experiences of recovery from mental illness may – automatically – be motivational and supportive for people who have yet to recover. Grounded in critical-, cultural-historical- and ecological psychology, this article explores how intersubjective dynamics unfold between peer workers and young people at a social-psychiatric living facility, and how peer-workers become part of the conditions for the young people’s developmental processes. The article invites a critical reflection of the potentials and paradoxes inherent in the use of peer support and questions the apparent unambiguousness connected to its implementation.