What kind of relevance do online tools have in counselling and therapeutic interaction with digital natives? 252 persons participated in the Therapy2.0-survey and answered the questionnaire.

Sample

• 252 persons from 7 countries
• About 80% female
• 1/3 aged between 41-50 years
• Wide range of years of experience from 0-25 years
• About 50% advisors, 42% therapists, 20% other

Usage of e-tools

• E-Mail (above 74%), Social Media (30%), Video Conference (27%)
• Service promoted by Social Media (about 40%): mainly Facebook (86%) and Other (35%) = Website, LinkedIn
• PC is the main hardware device (about 70%)

Experiences with e-tools

• More than 50% expressed a positive or very positive opinion towards e-tools in counselling/therapy, 25% have no experiences
• In case of rare usage of e-tools it is because it seems to be “too impersonal” (50%) and “not safe enough” (34 %) – NOT because they think that online counselling and/or therapy is not effective (12%)!!

Perceived advantages

• “Flexibility of place” (75%), “flexibility of time” (67%), “easier access for some target groups” (56%), “reaching new groups of persons in need” (52%)

Perceived Challenges

• “Lack of nonverbal communication” (72%), “not appropriate for all problems/topics” (63%), “potential misunderstandings” (57%)

8 most common problems of young adults

• Family problems (69%), anxiety disorder (68%), depression (55%), lacking skills for conflict resolution (50%) and communication (49%), learning difficulties (49%), alcoholic/drug abuse (42%), bullying/cyberbullying (40%) => Topics from both areas counselling and therapy

Needs & Expectations on Therapy 2.0

• Topics: “experiences of colleagues” (72%), “privacy aspects” (49%), “ethical aspects” (47%), “communication depending on the medium” (42%)
• Delivery: “as a collection of informative tools provided on a web portal” (64%)
• Interest in participation in training activities: yes (49%), maybe (37%)