E-Therapy: Case Studies, Guiding Principles, and the Clinical Potential of the Internet

Robert C Hsiung, Editor

Praise for e-therapy

"The authors are careful . . . not to overstate the role of technology. They acknowledge that use of the Internet may not benefit everyone and that an Internet connection is not a substitute for an actual therapist-patient relationship. This balanced perspective minimizes the threat to the traditional therapeutic relationship that some may infer in such a book. In fact, the authors repeatedly cast the Internet in a supportive, adjunctive role...even a skeptical reader will find the book evenhanded, interesting and educational. Anyone who has ever used a search engine will at least find the first chapter informative for its explanation of indices, catalogs, hybrids, metasearch engines, Web crawlers, spiders and bots. The book will find its most grateful audience among clinicians who want to incorporate the Internet more fully into their daily practice."
—Psychiatric Times

"The best introduction to the breadth of these online therapeutic interactions. Researchers will get a broad overview of a field fertile for research, and clinicians may begin to see how this medium could fit into their own practices."
—Contemporary Psychology/APA Review of Books

"In a world of information that tends toward randomness, therapists and clinicians often need guidance regarding how best to use new technologies and yet not allow the chaos of new media to undermine their practice. Here, a leading provider of online mental health information, robert Hsiung, has gathered a group of distinguished contributors to discuss clinical, ethical, and legal issues pertaining to e-therapy. Full of case studies and exmples of active programs that deliver mental health information and therapy via new media, E-therapy offers first-ahnd accounts of the potential and risk of recent trends in ‘distance therapy’ and ‘telepsychiatry'."
—Family Therapy

"Robert Hsiung has gathered an impressive group of contributors to discuss clinical, ethical and legal issues specific to e-therapy . . . Real-life examples of new and more commonplaces mental health serves on the Internet."
—Linda W. Jackim, Behavioral Healthcare Tomorrow

"A welcome guide by pioneers for pioneers setting out into the new territory of e-therapy."
—Peter D. Kramer, M.D., Clinical Professor of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, Brown University and author of Spectacular Happiness and Listening to Prozac.

"E-therapy will have a major effect on the lives of mental health professionals. This book offers an excellent overview of this emerging medium with articles written by some of the field's most notable pioneers."
—Tom Ferguson, M. D.,
Senior Research Fellow for Online Health, Pew Internet & American Life Project

"E-Therapy is that rare mental health professional book that, while packed with information, reads like a beach novel. Novice or expert, you’ll find something of interest, ranging from an eloquent discussion of cyberspace as a therapeutic holding medium to fascinating personal narratives by Internet pioneers to downright helpful tips on using e-mail in your practice."
—Valerie Davis Raskin, M. D., author of Great Sex for Moms: Ten Steps to Nurturing Passion While Raising Kids

"This book should be required reading for anyone approaching the subject of clinical activity on the Internet, either as patient or practitioner. Dr. Hsiung has recruited an extremely impressive list of contributors, and they provide a comprehensive discussion of the subject. What makes this book particularly successful is its acknowledgement of the multiple aspects and applications of information technology in mental health treatment and the seamless integration of these aspects into the text."
—Thomas A.M. Kramer, M. D., Deputy Executive Vice President; American Board of Psychiatry & Neurology, Inc.; Clinical Associate Professor of Psychiatry at Northwestern University Medical School and Medical College of Wisconsin

"Does the Internet provide an innovative opportunity to deliver mental health clinical services and to increase access to expert clinicians? This edited volume, under the stewardship of Dr. Bob Hsiung, provides a comprehensive and cautious perspective on the above questions. From e-mail to chat-room therapy to community telepsychiatry programs, pioneering e-therapists share real 'cyberspace' clinical vignettes that are balanced by legal, ethical and consumer perspectives. This text is an excellent introduction to a brave new e-therapy world."
—Harry Karlinsky, M. D., M. Sc., F. R. C. P. C., Director, Continuing Medical Education and Professional Development
Department of Psychiatry, University of British Columbia; Co-Chair, Section of Telepsychiatry, Canadian Psychiatric Association

"What is striking about this book is the thoughtful manner in which it develops approaches that are practical, creative, sensitive to clients’ needs, and efficient and effective for therapeutic use. The authors also carefully note how e-therapy may not be therapy in the traditional sense but how its outreach far exceeds traditional approaches….[P]articularly helpful to persons who have little to moderate computer usage."
—Gary C. Augustin, PhD,, American Journal of Pastoral Counseling

Overview – Excerpt – Table of Contents

In a world of information that tends toward randomness, therapists and clinicians often need guidance regarding how best to use new technologies and yet not allow the chaos of new media to undermine their practice. Here, a leading provider of online mental health information, Dr. Robert Hsiung, has gathered a group of distinguished contributors to discuss clinical, ethical, and legal issues pertaining to e-therapy. Full of case studies and examples of active programs that deliver mental health information and therapy via new media, E-Therapy offers first-hand accounts of the potential and risks of recent trends in 'distance therapy' and 'telepsychiatry.'

Chapters include

• The Internet 'Expert': Ronald Pies
• An E-Patient's Story: Martha Ainsworth
• Chat Room Therapy: Gary S. Stofle
• Using E-mail to Support Outpatient Treatment: Joel Yager
• Community Telepsychiatry: Sara F. Gibson
• An Online Self-Help Group Hosted by a Mental Health Professional: Robert C Hsiung
• Principles of Professional Ethics: Robert C Hsiung
• Legal Ethics in On-line Mental Health: Nicholas P. Terry

About the Author

Robert C Hsiung, M.D., is Deputy Medical Director of the Student Counseling and Resource Service at the University of Chicago and an Assistant Professor of Psychiatry. As 'Dr. Bob,' he runs a Web site out of the University of Chicago that provides a wide range of mental health information.

ISBN 10: 0-393-70370-3
2002 /250 pages / paperback