Interapy

A Controlled Randomized Trial of the Standardized Treatment of Posttraumatic Stress Through the Internet

  • Lange, Alfred
  • Rietdijk, Deirdre
  • Hudcovicova, Milena
  • van de Ven, Jean-Pierre
  • Schrieken, Bart
  • Emmelkamp, Paul M. G.
Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology 71(5):p 901-909, October 2003.

Online therapy offers many advantages over face-to-face therapy. Interapy includes psychoeducation, screening, effect measures, and a protocol-driven treatment via the Internet for people suffering from posttraumatic stress. The present article reports the results of a controlled trial on the Internet-driven treatment of posttraumatic stress and grief in a group of people who manifested mild to relatively severe trauma symptoms. Participants in the treatment condition (n = 69) improved significantly more than participants in the waiting-list control condition (n = 32) on trauma-related symptoms and general psychopathology. The effect sizes were large. On most subscales, more than 50% of the treated participants showed reliable change and clinically significant improvement, with the highest percentages being found for depression and avoidance.

Copyright © 2003 by the American Psychological Association