A comparison of online and in-person counseling outcomes using solution-focused brief therapy for college students with anxiety

Abstract

Objective

This study compared online, synchronous video counseling to in-person counseling using solution-focused brief therapy for college students with mild to moderate anxiety. Participants: Participants were 49 undergraduate students who were seeking counseling for mild to moderate anxiety. The study was conducted from November, 2017 to December 2018. Methods: In a randomized, non-inferiority design, undergraduate participants were randomly assigned to online, synchronous video counseling or in-person treatment for anxiety using solution-focused brief therapy (SFBT). Participants completed the Beck’s Anxiety Inventory (BAI) and College Counseling Assessment of Psychological Symptoms (CCAPS) to assess outcomes. Results: The results showed significant changes in scores on the BAI and the CCAPS Generalized Anxiety and Social Anxiety subscales for participants in both study conditions, and no significant differences in effectiveness of the two delivery methods. Conclusions: The findings provide support for the treatment of college students with anxiety with SFBT through online, synchronous video counseling. Limitations related to sample size and diversity are discussed.

Keywords:

• Anxiety
• college counseling
• emerging adults
• online counseling
• solution-focused brief therapy
• telemental health

Acknowledgments

The authors acknowledge the invaluable contribution of Janice Kessler, LCSW who was the second clinician to provide SFBT in this study. She contributed hours of her time to be trained and supervised in this mode of therapy and online counseling. We also acknowledge the work of Will Miller, student at Oregon State University who provided a significant portion of the fidelity assessment.

Conflict of interest disclosure

The authors have no conflicts of interest to report. The authors confirm that the research presented in this article met the ethical guidelines, including adherence to the legal requirements, of the United States and received approval from the IRB of Sacred Heart University.

Funding

No funding was used to support this research and/or the preparation of the manuscript.