Clients in Simulated Teletherapy via Videoconference Compensate for Altered Eye Contact When Evaluating Therapist Empathy

Abstract

Eye contact is frequently associated with an increased perception of empathy and telepresence, but the currently used videoconferencing (VC) technologies diminish the possibility of naturally conveying eye contact. This study compared the empathy, telepresence, and eye gaze patterns of clients in simulated VC teletherapy sessions where eye contact was altered or facilitated. Forty-two would-be clients met with one of four therapists in training for one 20-min simulated teletherapy session taking place via VC. The session either altered or facilitated eye contact perception by manipulating the positioning of the webcams and of the clients in their chair. Eye-tracking data focusing on the eyes, face, and general body regions of interest were obtained for 25 clients. The results show that facilitating eye contact in VC did not increase the clients’ perceptions of empathy or telepresence. However, empathy was associated with greater time spent looking at the eyes and faces of the therapists, but only in the sessions facilitating eye contact. We suggest that clients successfully rely on other verbal and nonverbal cues to detect therapist empathy when eye contact is altered in teletherapy sessions.

A Multisite Non-Inferiority Randomized Controlled Trial of the Efficacy of Cognitive-Behavior Therapy for Generalized Anxiety Disorder Delivered by Videoconference

“…Experimental studies are beginning to examine how to set up VCP to replicate face-to-face communication using computer-based systems (such as replicating direct eye contact [ 92 ]) and how these differences in settings can impact the psychotherapeutic process. For example, Grondin et al [ 93 ] reported that altered eye contact in VCP may not be as detrimental as previously believed for the perception of empathy from a psychotherapist. Several practical questions remain unanswered, and these could have an impact on the contexts in which our results could be generalized, such as how to ensure that patients are in an adequate environment for psychotherapy (i.e., no distracting stimuli, secured confidentiality), which software options really make a significant contribution to an optimal experience (e.g., using the picture-in-picture option [ 94 ]), or which factors contribute to patients being ready to start their psychotherapy session (e.g., regaining composure in a waiting room before a session [ 95 ]).…”

The Future of Psychotherapy Research and Neuroscience: Introducing the 4E/MoBI Approach to the Study of Patient–Therapist Interaction

“…The N170 ERP is studied through multiple experimental paradigms, including face perception tasks, face versus object discrimination tasks, familiarity discrimination tasks, and facial expression tasks (for reviews, see Hinojosa et al, 2015; Rossion, 2014; Tautvydaitė et al, 2022). Given the critical role that face-to-face encounters play in psychotherapy, especially in the development of empathy and social connections (Rees & Stone, 2005), the N170 ERP component could serve as a foundational element for incorporating neuroscience approaches into psychotherapy research (Emery, 2000; e.g., in psychotherapy, Grondin et al, 2022; Hedge et al, 1978; education, Major, 2014; Wohltjen & Wheatley, 2021). This is further supported by the natural human inclination to focus on faces, a tendency observed even in newborn infants (Johnson, 2005).…”

Theory and Data-Driven Competence Evaluation with Multimodal Machine Learning—A Chinese Competence Evaluation Multimodal Dataset

“…However, even in online communication, eye gaze is very important. For instance, in clinical situations, physicians with a constant gaze in videoconferencing teletherapy are perceived to be more reliable [70,71]. In online education situations, instructors with limited gaze variation are deemed to be more confident and have higher educational performance [72].…”

“…The estimated age of an individual is based on his appearance. [58][59][60][61][62] Glasses Whether an individual wears glasses [63][64][65][66] Eye gaze variation Whether an individual makes direct eye contact with a camera [69][70][71][72]92] Length-to-width ratio A measure of an individual's face length (measured from the top of the eyelid to the upper lip) divided by the width. [73][74][75][76][77] Vocal energy A term that expresses the perceived power of a voice and is quantified by amplitude.…”