The Necessity for Electronic Counseling on College Campuses
When we are asked to think about our health conditions, the first thing that comes to our minds is usually the physical state of our bodies. An important aspect that is often overlooked is our mental health. While mental health is not as openly addressed as the former, it is just as pertinent and applicable to each person. Parallel to how eating unhealthily and not exercising are bad for your physical health, adhering to the misconception that mental health issues are a personal matter that the individual alone can and should deal with is bad for your mental health; rather, one should reach out and talk to someone about what they are experiencing so that they can receive help. Furthermore, mental health is measured on a continuum; an individual could be experiencing mental complications, but not necessarily a mental disease. Regardless of where one is placed on the scale, their mental state has an effect on their overall health and ability to perform. The college transition and college life itself can be very demanding physically, mentally, and emotionally. While we do have our friends, advisors, and other support systems we could turn to, sometimes we need to or we just feel more comfortable if we seek help from experienced professionals who may better understand our personal scenarios. Thus, counseling is an essential component of campus life. Although face-to-face counseling is already an established practice, universities should focus on investing more resources on electronic counseling. This would lead to easier accessibility, reduction of social stigma, and potential for deeper reflection.
When it comes to counseling at the University of Michigan, Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) is the prime support system which students turn to. Their mission goal is “to foster the psychological development and emotional well-being of students through counseling and psychotherapy, preventive and educational programming, consultation and outreach, as well as contributions to the mental health professions” (CAPS Counseling and Psychological Services). Moreover, their Diversity Statement depicts their objective as “to affirm diversity, to condemn oppression in every form and to encourage the utilization of…[their] services by all students…” (CAPS Counseling and Psychological Services). In addition to individual counseling, CAPS offers group therapy sessions, workshops, psychiatric support, screenings, and even counseling for parents of a student who may be dealing with familial difficulties. Their web material, CAPS Stressbusters app, and social media are all resourceful, informative, and serve to support all students.
While many universities offer counseling services similar to those of CAPS, there still exists a variety of challenges in college counseling. An efficient solution would be to offer more electronic counseling resources. One of the challenges is therapists’ bias in counseling of multiracial individuals. Common stereotypes about multiracial individuals can stimulate subconscious bias against multiracial patients if the counselor generalizes them based on their identity rather than primarily treating them as an individual. It is crucial that counselors address this challenge because the ratio of multiracial students is rapidly increasing throughout schools (Harris 2). Certain forms of online counseling enable the patient to have an anonymous identity; this can reduce the risk of any identity-based stereotypes that could lead to counselor’s bias in counseling. Another concern is the increase in demand for counseling services. This increase is caused by the changing demographics of college student populations as well as a variety of social and cultural factors. It may also be an indication of a greater acceptance in treatment by students. This increase in demand, however, is not being adequately fulfilled by an increase in supply. According to a study, the “increased demand for services without a corresponding increase in resources is a major challenge and concern for 63% of campus counseling centers surveyed” (qtd. in Kitzrow 4). This concern is expressed by U of M students as well; CAPS had “reported a 17% increase in demand for counseling service in 2014-2015, more than four times its expected increase” (St. John, “Mental health speak out calls for better counseling services on campus”). While it would be ideal to have more counselors or appointment slots available to students, these are extremely costly and time-consuming. On the other hand, for online counseling, universities do not have to go through the hassle of trying to find more counselor to hire and further training them. Additionally, online counseling is a cheaper alternative to counseling.
There are many advantages to online therapy that are not found or are lacking in traditional counseling. Although electronic counseling has never been the principal method of counseling, it has been constantly modified throughout the past decades and has become more applicable and effective towards patient treatments. One of its benefits is its accessibility; as long as the patients have all of the necessary technology, they are able to receive treatment from any location. This ultimately spares time and money that would normally be spent for transportation. Additionally, social stigma around counseling could be reduced. Some methods of electronic counseling allow for anonymity; this could help students feel more comfortable, encouraging them to seek help and wholeheartedly open up to their counselor. Lastly, the time delay present in some forms of electronic counseling could enable the patient to reflect more on their emotions and how to communicate how they are feeling. For example, in a one-on-one or group chat box, both the counselor and the patients have time to thoroughly evaluate their thoughts and how to communicate them.
Recognizing these advantages, many universities throughout the U.S. have been adopting different methods of electronic counseling in response to increases in specific mental conditions. CAPS at U of M had implemented an over-the-phone mental health hotline into its program fall of 2015. This ProtoCall hotline enables students to immediately speak to a counselor whenever they need to, regardless of office hours, weekends, and holidays. CAPS had adopted this service after realizing that many students needed alternative resources for mental health crises that occurred during non-office hours. ProtoCall is used on more than 100 college campuses and has helped over 2 million students (Penrod, “CAPS adds after-hours call line for counseling”). Thus, online counseling can be beneficial for college students if the target and objective of that specific method is able to fulfill the primary demand of the students, and if it is used synchronously with face-to-face counseling. Likewise, the Counseling and Wellness Center at the University of Florida had recently developed an online psychotherapy program in response to a demand for more services. The program, called Therapist Assisted Online (TAO), is specifically for students dealing with anxiety. It is an integration of self-help and traditional therapy, and emphasizes on the relationship between the counselor. (O’Neil, “Campus Psychological Counseling for Students Goes Online”).
Undeniably, there can be several challenges imposed by counseling electronically. However, if used properly in addition to face-to-face counseling with the objective of helping a specific group of patients, student counseling will enhance maximally. Some may argue against online counseling that it is exclusionary to those with limited technological ability. Anonymity can also create challenges; counselors could potentially misrepresent themselves, or there may be scenarios in which they are obliged to report the client so that they can receive appropriate care (Harris and Birnbaum 135). Additionally, the lack of certain verbal and non-verbal cues increases the risk of misinterpretation between the client and the counselor. Depending on the medium of counseling, the messages sent between the counselor and the patient may be very limited. Furthermore, in cross-cultural scenarios, the counselor may be more “vulnerable to cultural insensitivity and unintentional discrimination…” (Harris and Birnbaum 136). For all of these reasons, in order to receive maximal benefits from electronic counseling, it should be used conjunctionally with face-to-face counseling. Moreover, video chats enable the patient to virtually experience that essential one-on-one time with their counselors. It is a good method of online counseling if patients are unable to physically see their counselors face-to-face, or if they just want to extend their face-to-face time outside of their counselor’s office. Online counseling services should also be designed specifically to help a certain group of patients. Depending on the severity of the mental complication, not all patients would benefit from the same online clinical service. Similar to how doctors specialize in specific practices, depending on the demand for certain care at a university, online counseling should be adapted to meet the needs of the students on that campus. Ultimately, face-to-face counseling is the central manner for which the student and the counselor would develop a foundational relationship—everything done online would be an enhancement to their relationship.
Considering the prevalent increase in demand for more clinical services across college campuses, more universities should fund electronic counseling. The University of Michigan has been taking the initiative these past few years to spread mental health awareness and to cultivate a supportive campus culture. Nevertheless, there still remains a large student demand for more and improved mental health resources. In an interview, a student stated that she “had difficulty making timely appointments and was told she should seek outside resources to receive long-term care for her chronic illness, which she said wasn’t a possibility due to money and transportation concerns” (Moehlman, “Regents address issues of mental health at Thursday meeting”). Universities in similar situations that initially responded to the issue by hiring more counselors found that implementing an online counseling service has been significantly more efficient—in terms of serving more students and improving their mental health. This ultimately saves a lot of time, money, and energy. Additionally, electronic services have the benefits of easy accessibility, easier outreach for students due to reduction of social stigma, and potential for deeper reflection because of delayed communication. If used properly as an extension to in-person therapy with the objective of helping students experiencing a specific mental complication, electronic therapy could help thousands of students throughout the country. Mental health is a critical component of our overall wellbeing, and directly influences our ability to perform the way we would like to. Moreover, college is a critical intermediary stage in constructing and defining one’s future. Thus, it is important that college students are able to access the proper resources necessary to take care of and foster their mental health. With an ongoing increase in demand for more adequate and alternative mental health resources, it is necessary that universities quickly respond by investing more on electronic counseling.
College Counseling and Psychological Services 