What is "Online Therapy"?
According to the clause 7.4 of the Association of Turkish Psychologists’ Ethical Regulation, under the heading "Non-traditional Psychotherapy”, online therapy is defined as 'Situations where telephone, e-mail, computerized chat, video conference and such platforms are used from the onset of psychotherapy interaction.' Online therapy is an alternative method of therapy whereby psychotherapy and psychological consulting sessions are conducted over internet.
Why "Evinizde Terapi"?
I’ve been conducting in-office treatments since 2001. Parallel to the unstoppable progress in technology, the age we are living in has brought significant developments to areas holding social communication networks. Video conferences (Skype, Hangouts, Tango, Viber, etc.), text messages (SMS), instant messaging (Whatsapp, Messenger and such ‘chat’ applications) have become present in all facades of life. This trend has also been successfully adopted in psychotherapy applications in various countries under various different headings such as "internet therapy", "online therapy", "virtual therapy" and "web therapy". Online therapy is relatively new in Turkey. And in year 2016 I started up Evinizde Terapi as a pioneer company under which I provide psychotherapy and counseling sessions to expats living and working in Turkey as well as Turkish citizens.
What does scientific research say about online therapy?
Despite adhering to ethical rules and principles of traditional therapy, the question of whether online therapy is a viable option is still open to debate. However, scientific research provides significant data on the effectiveness and validity of this method.
- The effectiveness of online therapy on the treatment of depression and anxiety disorders: A study conducted at University of Pittsburgh showed that the treatment program given in an electronic environment was observed to be more successful than stage one treatment by doctors. (May 2016) https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2016/05/160512124921.htm
- Comparison of online and face-to-face Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy intervention in the treatment of depression: According to this study conducted at the University of Zurich, patients who received online therapy displayed slightly better results compared to those who received face-to-face therapy. The six month follow-up showed a significant difference and complete recovery among the patients seeing online therapy. (June 2013) http://www.jad-journal.com/article/S0165-0327(13)00512-0/abstract?cc=y=
- Hospital visits of veterans who received online therapy versus who did not: According to the Johns Hopkins study involving 100,000 veterans, the hospital visits of those who received online therapy was slightly less than those who received face-to-face therapy. Psychiatric Services. (April 2012)
- Treatment of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder via online therapy: According to a study conducted with 45 defense officers experiencing Post-Traumatic Stress disorder following the 9/11 attacks, the group receiving online therapy showed improvement in more symptoms than the group being treated by classic methods of psychotherapy. After 6 month follow-up, online therapy group was observed to have better results compared to the other group. American Journal of Psychiatry. (November 2007)
- Online therapy satisfaction: According to a study conducted in Canada, recovery and satisfaction rates of patients who receive online therapy were the same as those who receive face-to-face therapy. Cost of treatment was determined to be ten percent lower in online therapy. American Psychiatric Association. (2007)