ONLINE PSYCHOTHERAPY: POTENTIAL AND CHALLENGES FOR PSYCHOLOGY PROFESSIONALS

Abstract

Online psychological interventions had already been increasing in recent years; however, the impacts of Covid-19 significantly affected people's mental health and caused the number of online psychotherapy sessions to rise. Due to technological innovations and increased internet access, online psychotherapy services are now offered in a wide variety of contexts and to different audiences. The main advantage of this type of service is the ability to offer mental health care and promotion to a larger number of people, in situations where access to in-person psychotherapy services would be more difficult. Recent studies indicate that the internet will definitively integrate into the set of resources available to psychotherapists as a relevant alternative for care. However, some questions can be raised about the practice of psychologists working online, especially regarding what changes and what remains equivalent when compared to face-to-face care. Therefore, using the integrative review methodology, this study aims to discuss the potential and challenges of online psychological intervention. A literature review was conducted, searching for research cataloged in electronic sites: Scielo, Pepsic, BVS, using the descriptors online psychotherapy, online psychotherapy, psychotherapy via the internet, remote psychological care, distance psychological care, and online therapeutic relationship. 89 articles were found, of which 11 met the inclusion criteria and constituted the sample. The results point to the existence of potential, but also numerous obstacles related to the practice of online therapy.