Abstract
Background: In 2019, the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in a significant rise in the usage of videoconferencing psychological therapy (VCP), as it became challenging for clinicians to offer in-person sessions. While this delivery format has become more widespread, qualitative research is lacking in exploring the clients’ experiences of VCP in depth.Objective: This research study aimed to explore clients’ experiences of VCP.
Method: In this qualitative research study rooted in phenomenology, semi-structured interviews were conducted via videoconferencing in 2022. Six individuals who had undergone VCP participated as interviewees. Following data collection, interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) was applied to analyse the interviews, facilitating a comprehensive exploration of the participants’ lived experiences in the context of VCP.
Results: The analysis revealed the emergence of four distinct group experiential themes and corresponding subthemes in the data: (i) Better than expected, participants had a better experience than their expectations. (ii) Attending therapy in one's environment refers to participants describing they attend therapy sessions at either their home, car, or workspace instead of the traditional therapist’s clinic room. (iii) The impact of the screen, different elements associated with the screen posed challenges to the therapy session, and (iv) Technical considerations in VCP, which refers to the technical problems and technical literacy of the user.
Conclusion: This study offers significant insights into clients’ experiences of videoconferencing psychological therapy and highlights the importance of a strong therapeutic alliance. Therapists should consider the use of screen impacts on clients’ therapeutic processes, emotional safety in this virtual environment, and technical challenges associated with the use of videoconferencing mediums to deliver psychological therapy. Limitations of the study are participants who resided in Wales and had a small sample size. Despite the limitations, this research contributes to understanding the evolving landscape of technology-mediated therapy and points to the importance of continued exploration.
| Date of Award | 2025 |
|---|---|
| Original language | English |
| Supervisor | Juping Yu (Supervisor) & Annie Beyer (Supervisor) |
Keywords
- tele-psychotherapy
- videoconferencing psychological therapy (VCP)
- clients’ experience
- interpretative phenomenological analysis
- implications for practice
- COVID-19