622 Therapy’s Digital Future

DeeAnna Nagel • Sunday All Day
No, the Internet isn’t replacing face-to-face conversation in therapy, but online technologies are extending and changing our practices. Increasingly, therapy is being conducted via e-mails, podcasting, chat rooms, videoconferencing, and texting. Then there are more exotic possibilities. Avatar therapy can free clients to express fantasies, transferences, and projections. Gaming can engage children and adolescents who have trouble expressing themselves verbally. But all these new possibilities have potential risks for ethical violations, privacy breaches, confusion, hurt feelings, and even re-traumatization. In this workshop, we’ll look at the widely used forms of Internet-assisted therapy, along with some of the more sophisticated applications, and explore their possible benefits, risks, and ramifications. You’ll come away with a clearer picture of how technology is transforming our field and the skills needed to master this new technology and use it with maximum effectiveness.

DeeAnna Nagel, L.P.C., D.C.C., a psychotherapist and consultant, is the cofounder of the Online Therapy Institute and the author of Online Therapy: A Practical Guide.