Digital help for behavioural change:
Therapy over the Internet
A Norwegian company can help you to change your alcohol habits or diet, or improve your relationship with your partner through therapy over the Internet.
Changetech brings together psychology and technology in a brand new way, helping people to benefit from modern psychotherapy without seeing a therapist. An international leader in the field, the company designs programmes that facilitate behavioural change through the use of digital interactive channels such as the Internet and mobile phones.
Illustration: Changetech
Changetech is in the process of creating therapy programmes for 17 areas of application. The first programme, Balance, will be ready for launch in spring 2009. Balance is designed to make people aware of their alcohol habits, and offers them assistance with changing those habits if they choose to do so. The programme has received funding from the Norwegian Workplace Advisory Centre for Issues Related to Alcohol, Drugs and Addictive Gambling in the Workplace (AKAN), and the Directorate for Health and Social Affairs.
Gain self-insight
The Balance programme starts with a screening that maps clients' habits, after which they receive feedback on their alcohol consumption. Follow-up is the next step, should they decide to pursue it.
"Users learn a lot about themselves as a person and about psychology in general. The programme builds on the therapeutic principle that clients must draw their own conclusions. The therapy itself is a mixture of encouragement, empathy and alliance building. In addition, users may choose to do specific tasks on the web or keep a diary, for example," explains Changetech's Harald Schjelderup-Lund.
Positive psychology
"We base our work on positive psychology and the desire to help people who have a need or desire for change. Well-functioning people can also benefit from our programmes and further enhance their lives," says Filip Drozd, a senior psychologist at Changetech.
"Studies show that digital tools are highly effective for achieving behavioural change. We who develop the programmes have stringent control of the therapeutic meeting between the therapist and the client and of the therapeutic process. We have the ability to equalise the relationship between therapist and client and prevent imbalance in their roles," he continues.
Available 24/7
The programmes are accessible 24 hours a day, allowing people to use them at their convenience. Information and feedback can be tailored to individual needs and are communicated in an interesting, engaging manner.
"Studies reveal that programme users increase their awareness of and knowledge about their problem area. This, in turn, encourages a change in attitude and a greater feeling of mastery," explains Mr Drozd.
International aspirations
Changetech is currently industrialising the programme development process, primarily for worldwide markets.
"Our main target groups are larger companies and organisations as well as pharmaceutical companies," says Mr Schjelderup-Lund. "But we are also developing smaller-scale solutions that will be marketed directly to users to help them to improve their self-confidence or willpower, for example."
ChangetechThis Norwegian company is developing a method for producing digital programmes for behavioural change. Changetech's main challenge is to create an industrial ICT solution that can be used to develop a wide variety of behavioural change programmes. The company is conducting a research project on the application of therapeutic principles in digital media. The research project encompasses two doctoral projects under the Department of Psychology at the University of Oslo, where the director of research and development at Changetech, Pål Kraft, is a professor. Changetech has been awarded funding by the Research Council over the Programme for User-driven Research-based Innovation (BIA). |
- Published:
- 12.12.2008
- Last updated:
- 12.12.2008
