Please help with assignment
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Online versus In-Person Counseling: A Review of Existing Studies: Method Section
Martha Ramsey
Saint Leo University
Capsthesis/Capstone Project II: PSY 695
Instructor Lara Ault
March 31, 2024
Method
1.
Selection Criteria
English language criterion for journalism was considered a critical component in the selection criteria. English language use was a key consideration because studies and papers published in non-English languages were not only challenging to comprehend and synthesize but could also comprise the rigor of the review. The researcher restricted the criteria to peer-reviewed articles published between the year 2019 to the year 2024. The chosen time frame aligned with the COVID19 pandemic era when online psychotherapy was frequently used in United States of America. Other than the time frame, the researcher considered studies with human subjects who were either counselees, counsellors, individuals who had experienced or were experiencing mental health challenges, adult participants, and young participants including children. The chosen studies were those that had used online psychotherapy as an intervention or used both in-person counselling and online psychotherapy. Outcomes of the studies were also considered during the selection. The researcher considered studies with outcomes that were either categorized in the form of experiences or effects.
2.
Search
The search process was guided by English language use in the articles and confined to search terms that included online psychotherapy mental health outcomes, telepsychiatry effectiveness, internet-based interventions for mental health, and advantages and disadvantages of online counselling. When the search phrase
online psychotherapy and mental health outcomes was searched, 3500 materials were found from the Saint Leo University library. When the search term was paraphrased to focus on peer-reviewed articles between the year 2019 to the year 2024, the search yielded 89 articles. When the terms
virtual counseling or virtual psychotherapy were used, the search yielded 389 materials from Saint University Library, 28 materials from PubMed, 6 materials from PsycINFO, and 89 materials from Google Scholar. When the search term was paraphrased to include peer-reviewed articles published between the year 2019 to the year 2024, only 12 articles were found in the University Library, 34 articles were found in Google Scholar, 3 articles were retrieved from PubMed, and 2 articles were found in PsycINFO.
The search term
telepsychiatry effectiveness yielded 600 articles from the Saint Leo University Library and 891 articles from Google Scholar, PubMed, and PsycINFO. This particular search also yielded a total of 69 books from all these libraries. When the search was narrowed to peer-reviewed articles from the year 2019 to the year 2024 a total of 19 articles were retrieved from these libraries. The search term
internet-based interventions for mental health yielded a total of 96 materials from Saint Leo University, 697 materials from Google Scholar, PsycINFO, and PubMed. When the search was narrowed by paraphrasing the term to include peer-reviewed articles published in the 2019 to the year 2024, a total 27 peer-reviewed articles were found from these libraries. When search term
advantages and disadvantages of online counseling was used, a total of 123 articles were retrieved from Saint Leo University Library, 368 articles were found in Google Scholar, PsycINFO, and PubMed. When search was narrowed to peer-reviewed articles published in the year 2019 to the year 2024, a total of 29 articles were retrieved from these libraries. The narrowed search based on peer-reviewed articles published between the year 2019 to the year 2024 yielded a total of 134 articles for all the search terms used. When measurements, outcomes, subjects, variables, and quality were considered, the researcher was only left with 15 peer-reviewed articles that have been further analyzed in the attached box score.
3.
Conclusion
This methodology utilized a narrative review with a systematic search strategy. The study did not rely on any measurement tools or devices to obtain the information for this research. English language use was a considered a key guideline in the selection criteria. Peer-reviewed articles published in English between the year 2019 to the year 2024 were considered for the review. Subjects, variables, outcomes, and quality were considered in choosing the 15 peer-reviewed articles.
