Comparing Digital Versus Face-to-Face Delivery of Systemic Psychotherapy Interventions: Systematic Review and...

Area of Science:

• Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences
• Health Services Research

Background:

• Digital mental health delivery is growing, necessitating evidence on its effectiveness.
• Systemic psychotherapy interventions are increasingly offered through digital platforms.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare the efficacy of digital versus face-to-face systemic psychotherapy.
• To synthesize evidence on comparative effectiveness of different delivery modalities.

Main Methods:

• Systematic review and meta-analysis following PRISMA guidelines.
• Included randomized controlled trials comparing digital and face-to-face systemic psychotherapy.
• Assessed risk of bias using the revised Cochrane Risk of Bias tool.

Main Results:

• Included 4 trials (N=754) with diverse participant groups (youths with chronic conditions, TBI, behavioral risks, and parents of youths with anorexia nervosa).
• High heterogeneity prevented meta-analysis for most outcomes (96%); qualitative interpretation was used.
• Nonaggregated analyses showed mixed results, with no consistent superiority for either digital or face-to-face delivery.

Conclusions:

• Evidence on digital vs. face-to-face systemic psychotherapy is heterogeneous, limiting definitive efficacy conclusions.
• Neither digital nor face-to-face modalities demonstrated superiority in meta-analytic or nonaggregated analyses.
• Further research is required to establish equivalence or superiority of delivery modalities in specific contexts.