ABSTRACT

COVID-19 outbreak imposes the adoption of extraordinary containment measures, including the strict necessity to limit interpersonal contact. Face-to-face psychotherapy collides with this requirement and, above all, it might endanger both therapists and patients’ safety. Telepsychotherapy might come to the aid, ensuring therapeutic continuity and the possibility to reach people who might benefit of extra psychological support. Infectious outbreaks have been indeed associated with major psychopathological outcomes. The aim of the present work is to review the most recent experimental evidence about telepsychotherapy, focusing on its effectiveness, possible determinants of efficacy and therapists/patients’ attitudes, to rapidly inform psychotherapists. Out of the 857 records found, 18 studies have been included in the review. Our results show that, despite therapists and public’s skepticism, telepsychotherapy is a trustworthy alternative to be adopted, which can be used efficaciously to treat common mental-health disorders such as anxiety, depression and post-traumatic distress. As well as in the traditional setting, a higher number of sessions and the proper management of patients’ expectations seem to be associated with better outcomes. On the contrary, low familiarity with web-based means of communication and technical issues might reduce specifically the effectiveness of telepsychotherapy.

摘要

COVID-19 的爆发要求采取非常规遏制措施，包括严格限制人际接触的必要性。面对面的心理治疗与这一要求相冲突，最重要的是，它可能危及治疗师和患者的安全。远程心理治疗可能会有所帮助，确保治疗的连续性和接触可能受益于额外心理支持的人的可能性。传染性爆发确实与主要的心理病理结果有关。本工作的目的是回顾有关远程心理治疗的最新实验证据，重点关注其有效性、疗效的可能决定因素和治疗师/患者的态度，以快速告知心理治疗师。在发现的 857 项记录中，有 18 项研究被纳入该评价。我们的结果表明，尽管治疗师和公众持怀疑态度，但远程心理治疗是一种值得信赖的替代方法，可以有效地用于治疗常见的心理健康障碍，例如焦虑、抑郁和创伤后困扰。与传统环境一样，更多的治疗次数和对患者期望的适当管理似乎与更好的结果相关。相反，对基于网络的交流方式和技术问题的不熟悉可能会特别降低远程心理治疗的有效性。更多的治疗次数和对患者期望的适当管理似乎与更好的结果相关。相反，对基于网络的交流方式和技术问题的不熟悉可能会特别降低远程心理治疗的有效性。更多的治疗次数和对患者期望的适当管理似乎与更好的结果相关。相反，对基于网络的交流方式和技术问题的不熟悉可能会特别降低远程心理治疗的有效性。