Abstract:
This study aims to identify the perceived challenges and benefits of online psychotherapy during the early phase of the COVID-19 pandemic. This is an exploratory and descriptive research with a quali-quantitative approach. The sample consisted of 385 psychologists who completed an online form. The data were subjected to descriptive statistical analysis and the open questions to reflective thematic analysis. The categories listed were: (1) Learning to deal with the crisis , which encompasses the challenges identified in the online setting, with emphasis on professionals’ insecurity due to lack of mastery of technical aspects, concerns about ethical issues, and patients’ resistance to remote care; and (2) Expanding the frontiers of practice , which refers to the benefits perceived with the use of digital platforms, such as expanding the offer of psychological care and financial advantages. The shift from face-to-face to online psychotherapy in the first months of the COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted both limits and possibilities, as well as the need to develop specific skills to offer technology-mediated psychotherapeutic care.
Keywords:
online psychotherapy; remote service; COVID-19; pandemic; information and communication technologies