Consumer Choice over Living Environment, Case Management, and Mental Health Treatment in Supported Housing and Its Relation to Outcomes

Choice and empowerment is commonly discussed as important for mental health consumers. Greater specificity is needed in identifying domains of consumer choice related to outcomes in supported housing. Using data from 534 chronically homeless adults participating in a supported housing initiative, mixed model regressions were used to test the predictive association between three factor-analytically derived domains of consumer choice (choice over living environment, case management, and mental health treatment) and housing and mental health outcomes. Controlling for sociodemographic characteristics, homeless history, and incarceration history, domains of consumer choice assessed at three months were not predictive of housing outcomes at six or 12 months. However, choice over living environment at three months was weakly predictive of psychological well-being and subjective quality of life at six and 12 months. Policy and clinical efforts to enhance consumer choice over housing and living options deserve support, although the magnitude of beneficial effects may be small.