Preference for in-person psychotherapy versus digital psychotherapy options for depression: survey of adults in the U.S

Renn, Brenna N.; Hoeft, Theresa J.; Lee, Heather Sophia; Bauer, Amy M.; Areán, Patricia A.

doi:10.1038/s41746-019-0077-1

Cited by 104 publications

(55 citation statements)

References 37 publications

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“…It would also be important for future research to pinpoint the reasons why few people prefer e‐therapy programs over face‐to‐face psychotherapy. For example, some have speculated low e‐therapy preference rates to be a result of peoples' limited knowledge of the evidence supporting e‐therapy, suspicion of psychological interventions without direct human contact, and concerns with privacy and sensitive personal information in an online environment (Batterham & Calear, 2017; Renn, Hoeft, Lee, Bauer, & Areán, 2019). Knowing the reasons for these low preference rates in the context of EDs could be important for addressing any misconceptions and concerns related to e‐therapy, thus potentially increasing rates of online therapy acceptance, help‐seeking, and engagement.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A survey study of attitudes toward, and preferences for, e‐therapy interventions for eating disorder psychopathology

Linardon

Shatte

Tepper

et al. 2020

Intl J Eating Disorders

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Objective: E-therapy shows promise as a solution to the barriers that stand in the way of people receiving eating disorder (ED) treatment. Despite the potential for etherapy to reduce the well-known treatment gap, little is known about public views and perspectives on this mode of intervention delivery. This study explored attitudes toward, and preferences for, e-therapy among individuals spanning the spectrum of eating pathology.Method: Survey data assessing e-therapy attitudes and preferences were analyzed from 713 participants recruited from the public. Participants were categorized into one of five subgroups based on the type of self-reported ED symptoms and severity/ risk level, ranging from high risk to a probable threshold or subthreshold ED. Results:Attitudes toward e-therapies appeared to be relatively positive; participants largely supported health care insurance coverage of costs for e-therapies, and were optimistic about the wide-ranging benefits of e-therapy. Although three-quarters of participants expressed a preference for face-to-face therapy, a significant percentage of participants (50%) reported an intention to use an e-therapy program for current or future eating problems, with intention ratings highest (70%) among those with probable bulimia nervosa (BN). Variables associated with an e-therapy preference were not currently receiving psychotherapy, more positive e-therapy attitudes, and greater stigma associated with professional help-seeking. Variables associated with e-therapy intentions were more positive e-therapy attitudes and a probable BN classification.Conclusions: Present findings have important implications for increasing online intervention acceptance, engagement, and help-seeking among those at different stages of illness.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A survey study of attitudes toward, and preferences for, e‐therapy interventions for eating disorder psychopathology

Linardon

Shatte

Tepper

et al. 2020

Intl J Eating Disorders

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“…Some clients using telephone or text-based therapies have reported feeling able to talk more freely and feeling less concerned about how others may judge them ( Turner, 2015 ). A recent adult survey suggested that 72% of adults would like to try digital psychotherapy, but when forced to choose between modalities, the majority preferred face-to-face ( Renn et al, 2019 ).…”

Section: Client Perspectivesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Business as usual? Psychological support at a distance

Payne

Flannery

Gedara

et al. 2020

Clin Child Psychol Psychiatry

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The impact of COVID-19 has challenged the long accepted ‘norm’ in delivery of psychological therapy. Public policies designed to reduce transmission have made it extremely difficult to meet with service-users safely in the traditional face-to-face context. E-therapies have existed in theory and practice since technological progress has made them possible. They can offer a host of advantages over face-to-face equivalents, including improved access, greater flexibility for service-users and professionals, and cost savings. However, despite the emerging evidence and anticipated positive value, implementation has been slower than anticipated. Concerns have been raised by service-users, clinicians, and public health organisations, identifying significant barriers to the wide spread use of e-therapies. In the current climate, many clinicians are offering e-therapies for the first time, without prior arrangement or training, as the only viable option to continue to support their clients. This paper offers a clinically relevant review of the e-therapies literature, including effectiveness and acceptability dilemmas and challenges that need to be addressed to support the safe use and growth of e-therapies in psychology services. Further research is needed to better understand what might be lost and what gained in comparison to face-to-face therapy, and for which client groups and settings it might be most effective.

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“…Self-guided digital technologies, including self-help apps and chatbots, have been proposed as solutions because of the advantages they provide in access and cost, but they are not a panacea, displaying several limitations [ 9 , 10 ]. Their reach is limited because people seeking mental health support typically prefer face-to-face over computerized therapy [ 11 , 12 ]. Their efficacy is limited because digital tools often fail to motivate and engage users [ 13 , 14 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Nonprofessional Peer Support to Improve Mental Health: Randomized Trial of a Scalable Web-Based Peer Counseling Course

Bernecker¹,

Williams²,

Caporale‐Berkowitz³

et al. 2020

J Med Internet Res

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Background Millions of people worldwide are underserved by the mental health care system. Indeed, most mental health problems go untreated, often because of resource constraints (eg, limited provider availability and cost) or lack of interest or faith in professional help. Furthermore, subclinical symptoms and chronic stress in the absence of a mental illness diagnosis often go unaddressed, despite their substantial health impact. Innovative and scalable treatment delivery methods are needed to supplement traditional therapies to fill these gaps in the mental health care system. Objective This study aims to investigate whether a self-guided web-based course can teach pairs of nonprofessional peers to deliver psychological support to each other. Methods In this experimental study, a community sample of 30 dyads (60 participants, mostly friends), many of whom presented with mild to moderate psychological distress, were recruited to complete a web-based counseling skills course. Dyads were randomized to either immediate or delayed access to training. Before and after training, dyads were recorded taking turns discussing stressors. Participants’ skills in the helper role were assessed before and after taking the course: the first author and a team of trained research assistants coded recordings for the presence of specific counseling behaviors. When in the client role, participants rated the session on helpfulness in resolving their stressors and supportiveness of their peers. We hypothesized that participants would increase the use of skills taught by the course and decrease the use of skills discouraged by the course, would increase their overall adherence to the guidelines taught in the course, and would perceive posttraining counseling sessions as more helpful and their peers as more supportive. Results The course had large effects on most helper-role speech behaviors: helpers decreased total speaking time, used more restatements, made fewer efforts to influence the speaker, and decreased self-focused and off-topic utterances (ds=0.8-1.6). When rating the portion of the session in which they served as clients, participants indicated that they made more progress in addressing their stressors during posttraining counseling sessions compared with pretraining sessions (d=1.1), but they did not report substantive changes in feelings of closeness and supportiveness of their peers (d=0.3). Conclusions The results provide proof of concept that nonprofessionals can learn basic counseling skills from a scalable web-based course. The course serves as a promising model for the development of web-based counseling skills training, which could provide accessible mental health support to some of those underserved by traditional psychotherapy.

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Preference for in-person psychotherapy versus digital psychotherapy options for depression: survey of adults in the U.S

Cited by 104 publications

References 37 publications

A survey study of attitudes toward, and preferences for, e‐therapy interventions for eating disorder psychopathology

A survey study of attitudes toward, and preferences for, e‐therapy interventions for eating disorder psychopathology

Business as usual? Psychological support at a distance

Nonprofessional Peer Support to Improve Mental Health: Randomized Trial of a Scalable Web-Based Peer Counseling Course

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