COVID-19 e Telepsychotherapy: Which Variables Affect Therapeutic Experience? (TELECOVID)

COVID-19 pandemic forced a widespread adoption of telemedicine, including telepsychotherapy.

Telepsychotherapy has been proven to be effective before COVID-19 breakout (Poletti et al., 2020); however, both patients and therapists were skeptical about this modality.

The aim of this study is to probe the experience of telepsychotherapy in both patients and therapists, during the COVID-19 lockdown. Thus, when the adoption of online colloquia was mandatory and not an option.

Crucially, studying the experience of telepsychotherapy during the COVID-19 pandemic allows i) investigating also the experience of those patients and therapists that were not favorable to this kind of intervention and ii) comparing the experience of therapy in the online and face-to-face modality, in the same patients and therapists. Furthermore, we collect several psychological variables that possibly influence the experience and efficacy of telepsychotherapy (e.g., personality traits, attachment state of mind, previous traumatic experiences) to define the psychological profile behind a favorable or negative experience of telemedicine in both patients and therapists. As crucial novelty, this information is collected in both patients and their therapists, allowing the direct comparisons between the experience of the therapeutic relationship (e.g., empathy, alliance) from two different point of views.

The results of the present study may help in the definition of possible subgroups of patients who may be sufficiently responsive to telepsychotherapy and those who may benefit - exclusively - of face-to-face interventions.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Telepsychotherapy
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: Telepsychotherapy

• Study Type: Observational
• Enrollment (Actual): 71

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• Italy
  • Milan, Italy, 20149
    • Istituto Auxologico Italiano

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 18 years to 100 years (Adult, Older Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Genders Eligible for Study: All

• Sampling Method: Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

The study addresses both licensed and currently practicing psychotherapists and their patients, namely individuals currently undergoing a psychotherapy

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Licensed and currently practicing psychotherapists
• Individuals currently undergoing a psychotherapy

Exclusion Criteria:

• not applicable

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Telepsychotherapy perception	Psychometric measures of general perception/experience on the remotely delivered psychotherapy as far as efficacy and interpersonal factors are concerned	At enrollment

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Istituto Auxologico Italiano

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): April 5, 2021
• Primary Completion (Actual): April 30, 2022
• Study Completion (Actual): April 30, 2022

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: February 22, 2023
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: February 23, 2023
• First Posted (Actual): February 24, 2023

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): February 24, 2023
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: February 23, 2023
• Last Verified: February 1, 2023

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Other Study ID Numbers: 23C123

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: NO

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No