Stay Awhile and Listen: User Interactions in a Crowdsourced Platform Offering Emotional Support

Internet and online-based social systems are rising as the dominant mode of communication in society. However, the public or semi-private environment under which most online communications operate under do not make them suitable channels for speaking with others about personal or emotional problems. This has led to the emergence of online platforms for emotional support offering free, anonymous, and confidential conversations with live listeners. Yet very little is known about the way these platforms are utilized, and if their features and design foster strong user engagement. This paper explores the utilization and the interaction features of hundreds of thousands of users on 7 Cups of Tea, a leading online platform offering online emotional support. It dissects the level of activity of hundreds of thousands of users, the patterns by which they engage in conversation with each other, and uses machine learning methods to find factors promoting engagement. The study may be the first to measure activities and interactions in a large-scale online social system that fosters peer-to-peer emotional support

A systematic synthesis of qualitative studies on parents’ experiences of participating in early intervention programs with their infant born preterm

Early intervention programs involving both the parent and the infant born preterm have demonstrated positive effects on developmental outcomes for the children. However, studies have also shown that parental engagement and adherence when implementing intervention programs can be challenging. The aim of this review was to provide a comprehensive description and new insights into key messages gleaned from the parent reports on participating in early intervention with their infant born preterm; knowledge vital to facilitate implementation of early interventions into clinical practice when using a model of direct parent involvement. Early intervention is broadly defined as a multi-interdisciplinary field provided to children from birth to five years of age to foster child health, wellbeing, development, adapting parenting and family function. For this systematic synthesis we define early intervention as programs with specific activities completed with the infant during the first year after birth. We assembled qualitative interview studies on parents’ experiences with participation in early intervention and applied Malterud’s qualitative systematic meta-synthesis to synthesize and translate the original findings across studies. In the analysis we applied enactive concepts of embodiment, autonomy, participatory sensemaking, and agency. 10 qualitative studies were identified and included. The systematic synthesis reveals how parents’ successful and meaningful participation in early intervention programs were facilitated by their “active embodied doing.” The “embodied doing” appeared as the basis for the parents’ sense-making processes, development of confidence, and the ability for parents to see new possibilities for actions within themselves, with and in the child. In that respect, a perception of mutuality in the interaction between parent, infant and interventionist was central. Consequently, an important consideration when implementing early intervention into clinical practice is to promote embodied parent–infant interactions as well as trust between the parent and the interventionist

Online psychotherapy practice in public teachers training colleges in the lake region, Kenya

Introduction of Information Communication and technology in particular internet aimed at widening access to flexible distance education in institutions of learning. This included the practice of online psychotherapy in learning institutions. In developed countries online psychotherapy has been practiced for many years. However there is less information on whether it has taken root in public teacher training colleges in Kenya. The purpose of this study was to examine Online Psychotherapy practice in Public Teacher Training Colleges in the Lake Region, Kenya. The Objectives of this study were to establish the attitude of tutors and trainees towards online psychotherapy practice, identify resources available for online psychotherapy practice, determine the trainees’ level of usage of online services, to find out advantages and disadvantages of online psychotherapy practice and to find out the factors that contribute to online psychotherapeutic relationship in teacher training colleges in the Lake Region, Kenya. The study utilized the Person Centered Theory and Technology Acceptance model for conceptual framework. Questionnaire for the tutors and trainees and in depth interview for lead counselors based on the objectives were used to collect data. The study population comprised 2200 and a sample size of 327 from the five teachers training colleges. The study adopted purposive sampling procedure to select 40 tutor counselors from the five teacher training colleges. Sampling techniques used to select trainees were stratified and simple random sampling procedures. Streams were identified as strata and 287 trainees were selected from the eight streams from each of the five colleges. The streams were further sub divided according to gender then followed by simple random sampling procedure for each gender to obtain averagely 7 cases from each second year class totaling to 57 trainees from each college and 287 from the five teachers training colleges. The research supervisors of Rongo University viewed the instruments of research to ascertain their validity. Reliability of the instrument was established by test retest procedure and a reliability co-efficient of +0.6 was reported. The study utilized descriptive survey design and data was analyzed using descriptive statistics with the aid of computer program that is Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 20. The findings of the study revealed that the respondents had a positive attitude towards online psychotherapy practice. The study also established that online resources are available and this provides a platform for online psychotherapy practice in teachers training colleges. The results further found that there was high level of usage of online services among tutors and trainees. The study findings challenged trainees and tutor counselors to embrace technology integration policy in teachers training colleges. Therefore, the Ministry of Education should allocate more resources for the development of online psychotherapy practice in Teachers Training Colleges. There is also need for the Ministry of Education to ensure that similar future research is carried out in all the teachers training colleges in Kenya

Models of collaboration between psychologist and family doctor: a systematic review of primary care psychology

open2noThe prevalence of psychological suffering is greater than the actual request for clinical consultation in Europe (Alonso et al., 2004). In Italy, no more than 5.5% of the population requested psychological assistance during lifetime (Miglioretti et al., 2008). There are different obstacles that prevent the access to mental health services, such as economic restrictions (Mulder et al., 2011), cultural prejudice (Kim et al., 2010), and lack of knowledge about the service providers that can answer to the patient’s psychological needs (Molinari et al., 2012). Therefore, the psychologist is often consulted as a last resort, only after everything else has failed, when problems have become severe, and thus requiring longer, more intensive, and expensive treatments. The introduction of the Primary Care Psychologist, a professional who works together with the family doctor, allows to overcome the above-mentioned problems and intercept unexpressed needs for psychological assistance. This professional role is operating in many countries since several years. In this study, current literature concerning different models of collaboration between physician and psychologist, in Europe and in Italy, was reviewed. A systematic search of Web of Science (ISI), Pubmed, Scopus, and PsychINFO was conducted using the initial search terms Primary Care Psychologist, Family Doctor, Primary Care, Collaborative Practice, and several relevant papers were identified. The review has shown the improved quality of care when mental health care is integrated into primary. Analyzing how different programs are implemented, results indicated that the more efficacious models of Primary Care Psychology are those tailored on the environment’s needs.The results of our systematic review stress the importance of the Primary Care Psychologist implementation also in Italy, to intercept unexpressed psychological needs and enhance clients’ quality of life.openFrancesca, Bianco; Enrico, BenelliBianco, Francesca; Benelli, Enric

Online support for newly diagnosed cancer patients : development, feasibility and efficacy of the intervention "STREss-Aktiv-Mindern" (STREAM)

Cancer is associated with high individual and societal burden worldwide, caused not only by mortality but also by morbidity and physical impairment of the patients. In addition, cancer frequently causes major psychological distress. Although distress screening programs aim to ensure appropriate psycho-oncological support, cancer patients often do not use these services. Therefore, the majority of newly diagnosed cancer patients lack psychological support. The development and testing of the first web-based stress management intervention (STREAM: STREss-Aktiv-Mindern) for newly diagnosed cancer patients forms the main part of this thesis. The rationale for this early intervention was three-fold: First, distress in patients with cancer peaks shortly after the diagnosis, irrespective of the cancer type. Second, the period immediately after the diagnosis tends to be busy with diagnostic and therapeutic appointments. Therefore, self-management of time, location, and autonomy facilitated by web-based interventions might be of particular value to these patients. Third, successful early psychosocial interventions have shown a substantial potential to affect the course of the disease beyond psychosocial outcomes. Although various web-based psychological tools have been available for at least a decade, such instruments have retained their evolutionary character. Healthcare professionals often fear to lose the therapeutic relationship with the patient which is known to play a role in the therapeutic effectiveness. In line with the growing literature on web-based interventions for many mental and physical diseases, we aimed to include those patients who are currently not reached by conventional support options by providing web-based support that does not exclude the helpful therapeutic relationship. Our findings showed that a web-based, minimal-contact stress management program is an attractive as well as time- and cost-effective way to provide psycho-oncological support to newly diagnosed cancer patients. Use of our tool resulted in significant and clinically relevant improvement of the patient’s quality of life and distress reduction

Experienced and inexperienced therapists : a comparison of attitude toward and use of countertransference disclosure

This descriptive exploratory study examines the relationship of clinical experience and attitude toward countertransference disclosure and use of countertransference disclosure. The study surveyed therapists for answers to the following questions: Are there any differences in the attitude towards countertransference disclosure between experienced and inexperienced clinicians? Are there any differences in the use of countertransference disclosure between experienced and inexperienced clinicians? Is there an association between attitude toward and use of countertransference disclosure for the sample as a whole; and is there any variance in this association between experienced and inexperienced therapists? Three-hundred-and-thirty-seven therapists completed the survey, yielding significant results. The major findings included the following: Experienced therapists use countertransference disclosure significantly more frequently than inexperienced therapists, and there is a more significant positive relationship between attitude toward and use of countertransference disclosure in experienced therapists. The data also showed that inexperienced therapists have a more favorable attitude towards countertransference disclosure than do experienced therapists, even though they use it less frequently. There is a significant positive relationship between attitude toward and use of countertransference disclosure for inexperienced therapists, but it is not as strong as that for experienced therapists. Although the differences between attitude and use were significant, the measure of difference between inexperienced and experienced therapists was actually quite small

An evaluation of therapeutic alliance and outcome in an internet chat therapy service

Although the Internet has increasingly been the focus of research over the past decade, there have been relatively few studies about how the full variety of Internet communication tools can be used for the purpose of delivering psychological services. Much of the recent emphasis has been on web-based self-guided psychological interventions, where interactions with a psychologist are minimal (Amstadter, Broman-Fulks, Zinzow, Ruggiero, & Cercone, 2009; Spek, Cuijpers, Nyklicek, Riper, Keyzer, & Pop, 2007). A limited number of studies have investigated the processes and outcomes of psychological interventions applied over Internet chat communication (Cook & Doyle, 2002; King, Bambling, Reid, & Thomas, 2006a; Mallen, Day, & Green, 2003; Rassau & Arco, 2003); however, there has been a general tendency to avoid comparing these forms of intervention with face-to-face therapy (Anthony, 2000a). This has had the unfortunate consequence of placing the existing research beyond the reach of evidence-based practice, where various forms of intervention are compared and contrasted. The main goal of this research is to make a direct comparison of psychological processes and therapeutic outcomes when the same group of therapists deliver psychological interventions to clients over both Internet chat and face-to-face therapy.A mixed quantitative and qualitative approach was utilised to integrate findings from outcome measures with the subjective report of clients and therapists who undertook Internet chat therapy. A team of 20 therapists provided psychological services to clients who self-selected either face-to-face or Internet chat therapy. Both therapists and clients completed measures for symptom severity and the therapeutic alliance at the first and third session. Therapeutic alliance was measured using the client, therapist and observer rated versions of the CALPAS, while symptom severity was measured using the BSI and SCL-90 Analogue. The final sample consisted of 17 matched pairs of Internet and face-to-face therapy cases, with 3 additional cases where the therapist was only able to obtain an Internet case for the data. The hypotheses of this study predicted that symptom severity would decrease and that the therapeutic alliance would increase over 3 sessions in both treatment modalities. It was also hypothesised that face-to-face therapy would outperform Internet chat therapy on each measure.Results of ANOVA analyses supported all hypotheses related to improvement over the first 3 sessions of treatment, with the exception of therapist-rated symptom severity. There was a strong main effect for client-rated alliance, increasing significantly at the same rate in both treatment groups: F(1,35) = 23.021, p < .001, partial 2 = .397, Cohen’s d = 1.15. There was also a strong main effect for client-rated symptom severity across both groups over the first 3 sessions of treatment: F(1,35) = 15.191, p < .001, partial 2 = .303, Cohen’s d = .92. Results for ANOVA analyses comparing treatment modalities did not identify statistically significant differences, with the exception of significantly higher alliances rated by clients receiving Internet chat therapy: F(1,35) = 6.972, p = .012, partial 2 = .166, Cohen’s d = .76. In addition to statistically significant change, an analysis for clinically significant change was also undertaken (Jacobson & Traux, 1991). Results of this analysis showed that there were only minor differences between groups at both the first and third session. In the Internet chat therapy group 10% of cases were ‘improved’ and 5% were classed as ‘recovered’. In the face-to-face therapy group, 11.8% were categorised as ‘improved’ and 5.9% classed as being ‘recovered. In summary, there were relatively few measurable differences between these modes of service delivery.Qualitative data generated from interviews at the conclusion of Internet chat therapy showed the importance of therapeutic distance for people who select this form of treatment. Clients described how the distant way of communicating to a psychologist over Internet chat led to a more personal experience for them. Therapists described the challenge of understanding the emotions of their client when relying on the written word alone. Clients and therapists also described the formation of mental images of the other party and the role this had in terms of constructing a sense of interaction with the other person. The formation of mental images had an influence on the quality of the working alliance that developed, with both clients and therapists being generally satisfied with the therapeutic relationship overall.Despite the widespread public use of Internet chat, this popular form of communication has received very little attention from researchers. The results of this study are promising in that they demonstrate that positive clinical outcomes are associated with client interactions with psychologists offering services over this modality. With meta-analytic reviews showing that larger treatment effects are associated with web-based interventions where there is greater therapist involvement (Barak, Hen, Boniel-Nissim, & Shapira, 2008; Spek et al., 2007), the present study raises questions about whether Internet chat could be utilised more broadly as a mode of service delivery. This study provides a detailed first glimpse at how real-time written communication over the Internet could be used for psychotherapeutic purposes

Effect of the Banking Time Intervention on Student-Teacher Relationships and Problem Behaviors in Early Childhood

This study explored the role of the Banking Time intervention on student-teacher relationships and problem behaviors in early childhood. Ninety elementary students (5-7 year-olds) were placed in either an experimental or control group. Students in the experimental group participated in the Banking Time intervention with their classroom teacher. Students in the control group participated in one-on-one reading sessions. Students in both groups were evaluated pre- and post-intervention using the Student Teacher Relationship Scale (STRS; Pianta & Hamre, 2001), Teacher Report Form (TRF; Achenbach, 1991) and a behavior observation tally form. A sample of students from both groups were administered a questionnaire pre- and post-intervention. Lastly, teachers completed a likert-type survey regarding their opinions of the Banking Time intervention to maintain fidelity pre-intervention and mid-intervention. It was hypothesized that the Banking Time intervention would help to foster student-teacher relationships and ultimately lead to decreases in problem behaviors, as measured by the STRS, the TRF and the behavior observation tally form. A significant decrease in problem behavior was found in the experimental and control group when measuring behavior with the Teacher Report Form. There were no significant findings to indicate that the Banking Time intervention improved student-teacher relationships. Implications for future research are also presented

Robotics for social welfare

Supported by developments in the field of social robotics, virtual worlds and ICT tools it is possible to build new solutions in health and welfare. Two projects are described in this article. They are intended to improve efficiency and quality of current therapeutic procedures. The ESTIMULO project improves emotional and cognitive status of people with dementia using a reactive pet-robot. The ELDERTOY project modifies the classical concept from the toy industry to develop a new solution for the aged people. ELDERTOY involves a double purpose, fun and therapeutic. In a complementary way, these projects aim to be an example of the breaking of the technology gap both of seniors and of people with disabilities. Therefore, the ultimate goal is to promote and adapt scientific and technological knowledge to be applied to improve significantly the standard of quality of life in society

Priming attachment security improves attitudes towards a range of therapies

We sought to understand how attachment orientation influenced attitudes towards different types of psychological therapies. In 2 studies, we i) examined attachment orientation as a predictor of attitudes towards different therapies; and ii) tested whether attachment security priming could improve attitudes. Study 1 (n=339) found associations between attachment orientation and attitudes towards, and likelihood of using different therapies. Positive and negative attitudes about different therapies mediated the relationship between attachment avoidance and likelihood of use. Study 2 (n=412) showed that primed security (versus neutral-prime) improved attitudes towards relational, non-relational and distanced-relational therapies for those with a fearful-avoidant attachment orientation. For relational and distanced-relational therapies, the mechanism of this effect was increased cognitive openness. Attachment orientation is a determinant of therapy attitudes and anticipated help-seeking behaviour. Priming security may promote open-minded decision making about some therapies. Findings are discussed with relevance to attachment theory, research and clinical practice