Telemental health experiences of doctoral students in counseling psychology programs

ABSTRACT

The central focus of this dissertation is to provide an overview of many areas of telepsychology and the lived experiences of doctoral students using teletherapy during the COVID-19 pandemic. Therefore, the origins of telemental health, and its development since the COVID-19 pandemic are discussed. The cost and benefit of these services is explored along with the possible directions in in the field of telepsychology. This is an important topic considering the steadily increasing reliance on technology. Teletherapy is especially pertinent to psychology doctoral students who are learning how to deliver psychology services, reduce stigma, and widen access in the best ways possible. Current trends suggest this form of service delivery will likely become more popular. For this reason, it is important to understand the experiences of doctoral students with this mode of service delivery. Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis design was used to examine the experiences of 4 doctoral level counseling psychology students. Each of these students had at least some experience providing telehealth services to varying degrees. Each participant discussed their experiences providing services, the feedback they have received from clients about their experiences, and how their educational experience was impacted by learning virtually during the pandemic. These results provide insight into the participants' challenges, benefits, and future areas of growth associated with providing telemental health services. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)