People who work with people typically like, well, working with people! Counsellors, therapists, and CDPs chose to do the kind of work they do because it allows them to work with people directly. They likely do so with the assumption that “work with” means “being in the same room as.” The pandemic woke everyone up to the possibility that “work with” could also mean “interact via a videoconference platform,” but for some practitioners this may not seem to be as effective or satisfying as working face-to-face.
Ephrem Fernandez and colleagues (from Texas, Australia, and California) explored the question of effectiveness of face-to-face vs. video delivery of psychotherapy by completing a meta-analysis of studies on the topic. A meta-analysis is a study of studies. Researchers collect studies investigating similar concerns and analyze findings across all studies. In this case, Fernadez et al. analyzed 103 studies comparing video-delivered to in-person psychotherapy. A total of 5,245 participants were included in these studies. Here’s what Fernandez et al. found:
- Psychotherapy, whether in-person or video-delivered, produced clinically and statistically significant outcomes compared to controls (e.g., people on waiting lists). In other words, psychotherapy is better than nothing whether face-to-face or virtual.
- Video-delivered psychotherapy’s outcomes were not statistically different than the outcomes produced by in-person psychotherapy. What this means is that, if video-delivered and in-person psychotherapy produce different results, they are not different enough to say one is better or worse than the other.
- Some conditions, particularly the treatment of anxiety, depression, and PTSD through the use of cognitive behavioural therapy – produced particularly strong outcomes among the video-delivered conditions.
Implication: Psychotherapy is not career/employment counselling or coaching, but it would be hard to argue that these findings would not apply to the 1-to-1 work of CDPs. CDPs can use Fernandez et al.’s work to (a) reassure themselves that, on average, their virtual 1-to-1 work is as effective as face-to-face intervention, (b) provide this information to clients and prospective clients so that they, too, are reassured, (c) stimulate self-reflection regarding the values, interests, and beliefs that led them to becoming a CDP, and (d) use this reflection to make informed decisions about their practice based on effectiveness and their own satisfaction/joy in doing the work.
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