202 Chapter 7 2008). Furthermore, single-case experimental designs (SCED) might be an alternative, as these designs are recommended to complement larger trials, for instance to examine treatment effects in individual patients (Kazdin, 2019; Krasny-Pacini & Evans, 2018; Landman, Bogaerts, & Spreen, 2023). Moreover, the combination of quantitative and qualitative methods are encouraged to examine the effectiveness of social network interventions in forensic psychiatric patients (Lewin et al., 2009). In addition, for the measurement of quantitative outcomes, future studies should include (1) more specific outcomes, such as psychiatric symptoms, mental healthcare consumption of in- and outpatient care, the number, frequency, and types of social activities, and the contact frequency with people in the social network, instead of an extensive battery of self-report questionnaires, (2) data from various informants, such as clinicians, other caregivers, family, and friends, and (3) objective data from official databases, such as medical and police records. We wish to emphasize that a critical selection of a few key outcome measures is preferable to the selection of a large number of outcome measures to reduce the length and intensity of assessments in psychiatric patients, which will improve the validity of outcome measures. Optimizing effectiveness of social network interventions Most importantly, in general terms, we assume that a more precise matching of social network interventions to the characteristics and needs of psychiatric patients might enhance compliance, affecting treatment effects (Beckers et al., 2022). Therefore, we encourage the field to continue developing and studying different approaches across specific subgroups of patients. In this section, we suggest several possible modifications and alternatives for future research, which may help to optimize the effectiveness of social network interventions among forensic psychiatric patients. First, it is recommended to compare the treatment effects of different types of caregivers providing social support to effects of community volunteers. For example, research showed that one-on-one support from peers with a history of mental healthcare problems and/or criminal behavior (i.e., peer supporters) could have the potential to initiate personal growth and improve treatment outcomes in patients with criminal behavior (Im Kang & Kang, 2022; Lenkens et al., 2023; Smit et al., 2022). The provision of support by peer supporters could be preferred over community volunteers because these supporters might act as more credible role models given their own experiences. Moreover, as peers have gone through a transition towards recovery themselves, they are perhaps better able to show that change is possible and to provide hope (Lenkens et al., 2023). Besides, we
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