An examination of more than 5,000 patients at Brigham Young University uncovered that online cognitive-based therapy is just as effective as traditional therapy. The findings were released in Psychotherapy Research.
The study was considered to be the largest of its kind, offering online cognitive-based therapy to treat mild-to-moderate symptoms in patients using a typically similar routine as traditional therapy.
According to researchers, the online cognitive-based therapy sessions were in no way different from in-person therapy, with symptoms of anxiety and depression improving among patients with either form of intervention.
“Whether you were doing an internet-delivered program, in-person therapy or a combination of both, there were no significant differences in outcome,” said Meredith Pescatello, co-author of the study, in a press release.
“Programs like SilverCloud are a great first exposure to therapy for people wondering, What would therapy look like for me? Just having a simple positive interaction in the mental health world can help de-stigmatize it,” Pescatello suggested.
Such self-help programs like SilverCloud, for instance, researchers stated could free up counseling centers by quick interventions and leave the in-person care for patients with more severe symptoms. Several studies have been released demonstrating similar results: online-based therapy sessions are in fact effective.
