Yesterday, the topic in my Intro to Psych class was Psychotherapy. The book lists the usual theories and modes of conducting treatment and included cybertherapy. I mentioned some caveats with the latter as well, and the class wanted to know if I thought it was a scam, which I denied, for it is not. Then I decided to log on to TalkSpace and pointed out that they state they had thousands of licensed, qualified therapists, which I was sure was accurate. I pointed out that in cybertherapy, the therapist had no way if keeping the space safe, as happens in all other types of treatment--what if the patient said--You suck doc and I'm checking out, then proceded to down what looks like a vial of pills with what looks like a bottle of wine? By the time the therapist calls 911, goodnight.
I decided to log in to show them further issues and got more than I bargained for (for free, yay).
I typed in the name and age of my alter, Sophia, age 29. I truthfully put in that I was in Brooklyn, NY, at the time, as I wasn't sure if I could be tracked on the college's computer. "Angela," a LCSW popped up. From the photo, she was an attractive female who looked about 27. She greeted me and asked my sx. I asked the class what troubled me (that could have opened a can of worms right there). They said, Depression. I typed that in. There was a huge time lag. Finally, I was asked "what does that mean to you." My students said, "I cry and keep to myself." Then, after another 5 minutes, "Angela," came back with TALKSPACE info, 24/7, all that they can do for me. I wondered to the class about Angela being a bot. They thought she was typing in from a call center in India. After another 5 minutes, Angela typed back, "I hear you. Are you isolating. " I said to my class, "She can't hear anything I say." When you care about language, this gets aggravating. I typed back, quite truthfully, by the way, that "I am always surrounded by people." Angela asked then, "what I wanted from therapy." I asked the class. One girl replied, "I want to be heard." So I typed that in (I thought it was an excellent suggestion, btw). That was the last I heard from Angela. I'm assuming such a response was not coded in her algorithm.
BTW, the brief type and time lag response above took over 1/2 hour. Angela didn't respond within 10 minutes to my desire to be heard and I wanted to move on by then.
Gosh, even the computer doesn't want to hear from me. Makes me feel like Charlie Brown. Rats.
But seriously, what if I was really needy, not just doing a demo for an audience?
There is nothing wrong with therapy via the internet. But if you are interacting with a cybot--but you need to state that off the bat. Informed consent and all that.
I remember as an undergraduate in my own Intro to Psych class, reading in our text by Zimbardo and Ruch (Ruch---is that a real person---Zimbardo, well, we all know about him. Ruch? It occasioned much jocularity--Ruch, retch, etc). I learned about Eliza, a computer program named after Shaw's Eliza. A "patient" (subject) would type in information about their functioning. Eliza was programmed to respond, based on key words and algorithms. For example, after a brief q and a, Eliza typed in, "I notice you haven't said anything about your father." Furthermore, there did not seem to be a lag in her responsiveness to the "subject."
Therapists have always had to modify the treatment to the patient. Winnicott met about once a month with the Piggle's family, as they lived a long train ride from London. He was flexible and his account leaves little doubt that the family and the child improved.
I do not feel improved by my encounter with Angela. I still believe she is a bot, and the photo an avatar.