The efficacy of internet‐based cognitive behavioural therapy for social anxiety disorder: A systematic review and meta‐analysis

Abstract

Social anxiety disorder (SAD) is one of the most common lifelong anxiety disorders.Although cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) has proven to be effective in treating people with SAD, it may not be available for a considerable proportion of patients.Internet-based CBT (ICBT) is more accessible than face-to-face treatment. This metaanalysis evaluated the efficacy of ICBT in patients with SAD. We searched five databases, PubMed, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Health Management Information Consortium, Ovid MEDLINE and EMBASE, and identified 20 eligible randomized controlled trials published from inception to 25 July 2020, with the outcome data from 1,743 participants. The results indicated that ICBT had a significant positive effect on patients with SAD compared with the control groups (g = −0.55). A subgroup analysis revealed that ICBT and CBT had an equal effect on treating patients with SAD ( g = −0.18). There was also no difference between ICBT and ICBT plus other therapies in the treatment of patients with SAD ( g = −0.07). The effect size of ICBT on patients with SAD was maintained at the 6-month follow-up (g = −0.08) and at the 12-month follow-up (g = −0.17). The findings of this review demonstrated that ICBT can significantly reduce SAD symptoms and that ICBT and face-to-face CBT produce equivalent effects. The results of this meta-analysis contributed to the literature on ICBT for the treatment of patients with SAD, although numerous aspects of ICBT were identified for future investigations.

Therapist-guided internet-based psychodynamic therapy versus cognitive behavioural therapy for adolescent depression in Sweden: a randomised, clinical, non-inferiority trial

“…However, evidence on ICBT for adult populations suggests that therapist experience does not affect outcomes. 39 All therapists were supervised by experienced therapists within each modality and supervision was based on transcripts from the treatment. Although this strategy should lessen the risks of therapist drift, the integrity of the two treatments could have been furthered by using independent, masked treatment adherence checks.…”

Using Electronically Delivered Therapy and Brain Imaging to Understand Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Pathophysiology: Protocol for a Pilot Study

“…From a previous meta-analysis conducted, the estimated completion rate from in-person psychotherapy is approximately 75% [ 50 ]. Additional meta-analyses found treatment adherence for web-based psychotherapy to be between 61% and 66%, with no significant difference with in-person psychotherapy [ 51 - 53 ]. A study investigating the efficacy of a 10-session e-CBT program for OCD had a mean completion of 7.28 sessions [ 54 ].…”

The Experience Among College Students with Social Anxiety Disorder in Social Situations: A Qualitative Study

“…9 At present, with the improvement and development of psychological counseling in China, an increasing number of SAD patients are seeking help in psychological clinics. 10 At present, a large number of relevant investigations and experimental studies have been performed; [11][12][13][14] however, there are few studies from the perspective of SAD patients, which leads to the lack of findings of their inner experiences.…”