Abstract

Even though e-mental health services have the potential to increase reach to evidence based care, the public has tended to view them less favorably than in-person therapy. This study examined whether individual intentions for using psychotherapy are influenced by the service’s target—supporting oneself or supporting a loved-one. The sample consisted of 78 parents who were randomized to one of these two conditions: reading descriptions of interventions aimed at treating their own anxiety disorder (self-condition) or at helping them treat their child’s anxiety (loved-one condition). In both conditions, we compared parent intentions to receive treatment through in-person and unguided digital intervention mediums. Parents in the loved-one condition with no previous experience of psychotherapy showed no significant differences in their intentions to use the two intervention mediums. However, in all other study conditions, participants’ intentions favored in-person therapy as the intervention medium. Thematic analysis suggests that participants’ preference for unguided interventions when the focus was on supporting a loved one revolved around the perceived lack of need for an interpersonal therapeutic relationship for this intervention’s target. Our results imply that technology may have an advantage when used to train people to support their loved-ones’ mental health.

摘要

尽管电子心理健康服务有可能增加循证护理的覆盖面，但公众倾向于认为它们不如面对面治疗。这项研究检查了个人使用心理治疗的意图是否受到服务目标的影响——支持自己或支持所爱的人。样本由 78 名父母组成，他们被随机分配到以下两种情况之一：阅读旨在治疗他们自己的焦虑症（自我状况）或帮助他们治疗孩子的焦虑症（亲人状况）的干预措施的描述。在这两种情况下，我们比较了父母通过面对面和无指导的数字干预媒体接受治疗的意图。以前没有心理治疗经验的亲人父母在使用这两种干预媒介的意图上没有显着差异。然而，在所有其他研究条件下，参与者的意图倾向于将面对面治疗作为干预媒介。主题分析表明，当重点是支持所爱的人时，参与者对无指导干预的偏好围绕着对这种干预目标的人际治疗关系的感知缺乏。我们的研究结果表明，当用于培训人们支持他们所爱的人的心理健康时，技术可能具有优势。主题分析表明，当重点是支持所爱的人时，参与者对无指导干预的偏好围绕着对这种干预目标的人际治疗关系的感知缺乏。我们的研究结果表明，当用于培训人们支持他们所爱的人的心理健康时，技术可能具有优势。主题分析表明，当重点是支持所爱的人时，参与者对无指导干预的偏好围绕着对这种干预目标的人际治疗关系的感知缺乏。我们的研究结果表明，当用于培训人们支持他们所爱的人的心理健康时，技术可能具有优势。