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The power of a click: the presence of social media in therapy with couples and families
Dissertation   Open access

The power of a click: the presence of social media in therapy with couples and families

Nina A. Mendez
Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), Drexel University
2017
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17918/etd-7540
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Abstract

Couples therapy Family psychotherapy Social media Ethics Psychology
Combining the most popular social networking sites (SNS), Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Linkedin, and Pinterest, the number of social networking users has exceeded two billion (Jain, 2012). The average American spends a minimum of thirty-seven minutes per day on SNS which surpasses any other internet activity, including email (Adler, 2014). The high number of users and the amount of time people spend social networking has given rise to an increased interest of research on social medical and mental health. For example, several studies have shown that extended social media use increases depression (Veretilo & Billick, 2012), symptoms of bipolar mania, narcissism, and histrionic personality disorder in adults 18-35 (Rosen, Whaling, Carrier & Cheever, 2012) and decreases self-esteem among adolescents (Shapiro & Margolin, 2014). Surprisingly, few research studies have focused on what role social media has in psychotherapy in general and more specifically, in family therapy. This study explored potential impact of social media, concentrating on the unique challenges in work with couples and families. This study used Media Ecology theory as a guide which focuses on the impact of technology on humans (McLuhan, 1994) Media Ecology theory informed an understanding of how social media is intersecting with the therapeutic process. The Couple and Family Therapist Social Media Questionnaire was a survey developed specifically for this study. Using email and social media outlets, the survey was distributed and completed nationally by 232 therapists. The survey explored four primary domains 1) therapists personal and professional use of social media 2) comfort with technology, 3) risk taking and social media use, and 4) implications for possible ethical violations with social media use in therapy. Results indicate 1) therapists who are more comfort with technology are recommending clients use social media to build social supports, 2) therapists having a more sensation seeking personality is independent of their likelihood to integrate social media into clinical practice, and 3) therapists are engaging in potentially risky behaviors via social media. More specifically, younger therapists are posting about clients on their personal social media pages.

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