Klinisch-psychologische Interventionen mit Mobilmedien

The internet gained popularity in the mid-nineties; its integration into psycho-social health care structures has been established in the meantime. The mobile communication boom followed in the early years of the second millennium. Within a very short time, the cellular phone has become a personal multi-purpose tool. Against this background it seems obvious to investigate to what extent mobile media, beside the internet, can meaningfully support clinical practice. This article gives an overview of the current research and development status of clinical-psychological intervention with the aid of computer-based mobile media (Mobile Therapy, abbr. M-Therapy). Contrary to a desktop with internet access, where its use is limited to certain areas, wireless mobile media have the ability to instantly collect clinically relevant data, complete training units or organize contacts to therapists. Pilot projects and first evaluation studies show that, for example, cellular phones, game consoles and handhelds are productive in psychological diagnostics, counseling, rehabilitation and therapeutic support. They are widely accepted and increase the effectiveness of therapy. We will discuss the media-specific opportunities and limitations of M-Therapy as well as its implications for clinical practice.     

Berufspolitik im Internet

Ohne Zusammenfassung     

Psychoanalytische Ressourcen im Internet

Ohne Zusammenfassung     

Update der psychoanalytischen Links im Internet

Das Forum der Psychoanalyse hat zuletzt in Heft 1/2007 nützliche Internetadressen für Psychoanalytikerinnen und Psychoanalytiker publiziert. Hier folgt, zusammengestellt von Parfen Laszig und Kathy Rieg, ein aktuelles Update. Ausführlichere Informationen zu den angeführten und weiteren Adressen finden sich auf der Internetseite www.psychoanalytische-ressourcen.de     

Update der psychoanalytischen Links im Internet

Ohne Zusammenfassung     

Development of an Internet Intervention to Promote Wellbeing in College Students

Objective

While tertiary students commonly experience distress that substantially impacts functioning and performance, few seek help. Innovative strategies are needed to promote wellbeing and address this distress. The current article describes the development, acceptability testing, and use of an Internet intervention to promote student wellbeing and resilience—thedesk.

Method

Acceptability and useability of the program were evaluated by user analytics and focus groups.

Results

In the first 3.5 years, 118,000 individuals accessed the website and had 163,000 sessions averaging 5.3 min and 6.9 accessed pages. Users’ wellbeing scores were positively skewed, suggesting that the engaged content has broad relevance. While the percentage of people leaving the site after viewing the homepage was considered acceptable at 50%, there is significant room to improve engagement. Responses from consumer focus groups suggested high acceptability, perceived usability, and likely utility. Concerns included data security and, for international students, the need for greater direction on program use.

Conclusions

While further research is needed to evaluate the effects of thedesk on wellbeing and distress, the current results suggest that it provides highly accessible support that is well accepted by most tertiary students and has the potential for use as a stand‐alone intervention or, adjunctively, to increase the impact of other student support.     

Outcome of the Psychological Intervention Program: Internet Use for Youth

The prevalence of problematic Internet use (PIU) is reportedly higher in South East Asian adolescent populations. The exacerbation of problematic adolescent behaviors has been found to associate significantly with PIU and is expected to worsen with age. Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)-integrated therapy has been shown to significantly reduce in the presence of psychological symptoms such as depression and social anxiety. The Psychological Intervention Program-Internet Use for Youth (PIP-IU-Y) is a CBT-based program designed for adolescents and comprises of a series of interpersonal skills to improve their face-to-face interaction. It focuses on taking preventative measures against Internet addiction before it develops by addressing the participant’s PIU as a negative coping style and incorporating positive psychological techniques. A total of 157 participants between the ages of 13 and 18 completed the program which consisted of eight weekly, 90 min sessions in a group format. Treatment outcomes were measured using mean change at the end of the program and 1 month post-treatment. The majority of the participants showed improvement after the eight weekly sessions of PIP-IU-Y and continued symptom maintenance at the 1 month follow-up. An overwhelming majority of participants were able to manage PIU symptoms after the intervention program, reinforcing the efficacy of the PIP-IU-Y. Not only did it addresses the PIU behaviour but also helped in reducing social anxiety and increasing social interaction. Further research could investigate treatment differences among the various subtypes of PIU (e.g., online gaming and pornography) in order to see if treatment differences exist.     

Effectiveness of an Internet Dissonance-Based Eating Disorder Prevention Intervention Among Body-Dissatisfied Young Chinese Women

Body image disturbances are widespread in highly populated, rapidly developing Asian nations such as China, but there are severe shortages of practitioners qualified to treat these issues. In such contexts, validated online interventions offer a potentially viable approach for addressing the lack of treatment resources. In this study, we evaluated effects of the eBody Project, an online, dissonance-based eating disorder prevention program, on functioning among body-dissatisfied young Chinese women. Participating women were randomly assigned to the 6-week eBody Project intervention (n = 191) versus an education brochure control condition (n = 181). Self-report assessments of eating disorder risk factors (body dissatisfaction, thin ideal internalization, depressive symptoms, restrained eating), self-esteem, body appreciation, and disordered eating were completed at baseline, posttreatment, and a 6-month follow-up. There were no intervention differences on outcomes before treatment but eBody Project women experienced significantly larger improvements on all outcomes following treatment and/or at follow-up compared to controls; corresponding effect sizes were small to medium. Results indicated the eBody Project program is a promising intervention for young women at risk for eating disorders in China and provide foundations for broad implementation in low- and middle-income countries where resources for in-person therapy and supervision are limited or unavailable altogether.