Effectiveness of a web-based group intervention for internet addiction in university students.

The phenomenon of Internet addiction has been systematically addressed with numerous studies highlighting its association with deficits in self-regulation. Despite the extensive literature elucidating the adverse effects of Internet addiction on university students, the availability of relevant interventions has remained constrained. The current study aimed at evaluating a web-based, group intervention, which aimed to prevent Internet addiction and enhance self-regulation. The sample consisted of 47 undergraduate and postgraduate university students (Ν = 47, Mage=21, SD = 3), who were divided into an intervention (n = 24) and a control group (n = 23). The participants were asked to complete a) the Internet Addiction Test (Young, 1998), and b) the Self-Regulation Questionnaire (Brown et al., 1999), prior to the commencement of the intervention, after its conclusion, and one and a half months after the intervention. The web-based intervention consisted of 6 sessions, over a two-week period. Results indicated an improvement of self-regulation and Internet addiction levels for the intervention group, compared to the control group. These results were maintained at the one and a half months follow-up. Implications for designing and implementing web-based group interventions for Internet addiction are discussed.

"Staying Home - Feeling Positive": Effectiveness of an on-line positive psychology group intervention during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The current study investigated the effectiveness of a group on-line positive psychology intervention (OPPI) designed to mitigate the psychological impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent measures to control it. Study participants (N = 82, M age = 33.07, SD = 9.55) were all Greek adults divided into an intervention (n = 44) and a control group (n = 38). The intervention group attended a voluntary, online, two-week, six-session (each 50 min), group intervention. The intervention aimed at enhancing participants' personal strengths and resilience in order to cope more effectively with the psychological impact of social distancing (e.g., feelings of anxiety, sadness, fear, and/or loneliness). All participants completed an online questionnaire one week before the intervention's implementation, which included scales measuring their: demographic characteristics, empathy, resilience, affectivity, feelings of loneliness, depression and anxiety levels, and feelings of fear regarding the outbreak. Participants in both the intervention and control group completed the same measures the week following the intervention's termination to examine its effects, and two weeks later to examine its long-term effectiveness. The intervention was found to be effective in alleviating the impact of the pandemic and in strengthening participants' resilience. More specifically, the results showed significant decreases for the intervention group in all measures of psychosocial distress (anxiety, depression, loneliness and fear) and significant increases in empathy, resilience, and experience of positive emotions. The study's implications for the development and implementation of online psychological interventions during a crisis are discussed.

Therapeutic Factors and Member Satisfaction in an Online Group Intervention During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

The purpose of the present study was to evaluate members' perceptions of the therapeutic factors during a group intervention that was designed to mitigate the adverse psychological effects of the coronavirus pandemic and the imposition of restrictive measures, their satisfaction with the online format of the intervention, and how these are associated with the intervention's outcomes. The participants (N = 44, M age = 31.93, SD = 8.09) were Greek adults who attended a 2-week, voluntary, online group intervention. To assess the effectiveness of the intervention, 1 week before and 1 week after implementation, participants completed several questionnaires measuring their demographic characteristics, empathy, resilience, affectivity, feelings of loneliness, depression and anxiety levels, and feelings of fear regarding the outbreak. One week after the intervention, they also completed two questionnaires evaluating the therapeutic factors and their satisfaction and impressions regarding telemental health counseling. Analyses showed that the most frequently cited therapeutic factor was guidance, followed by acceptance, self-disclosure, universality, and instillation of hope. Therapeutic factors of catharsis, self-disclosure, guidance, self-understanding, vicarious learning, and therapeutic alliance correlated with elements of empathy, resilience, loneliness, positive emotions, symptoms of anxiety and depression, and fear of the coronavirus. Satisfaction with the online format of the intervention was associated to universality, elements of empathy, and symptoms of depression. More specifically, member satisfaction was negatively correlated with improvement in personal distress and depression, an unexpected finding that may be attributed to the brief duration of the present intervention. The practical value of the results for the development and implementation of online psychological interventions during a crisis is discussed.