Mental Health and Digital Technologies: Volume 1 Issue 2

Editorial: Artificial intelligence in psychological therapy: the promise and the perils

James Acland, Neil Hammond, Simon Riches

Technology-enhanced psychological assessment and treatment of distressing auditory hallucinations: a systematic review

Emma O’Neill, Molly Bird, Simon Riches

Auditory hallucinations (“hearing voices”) are a relatively common experience, which is often highly distressing and debilitating. As mental health services are under increasing…

Virtual reality and social avoidance: an exploratory study of acceptance, and feasibility in an inpatient secure environment

Alessandra Girardi, Lorraine Higham, Sarrah Fatima, Elanor Webb, Pieter Snyman, Paul Wallang, Kieran C. Breen

Social avoidance disorders can be disruptive to the individual as they begin to over-manage their lives, at times avoiding social and work commitments. A potential therapeutic…

Virtual reality hypnotherapy for healthcare students: a feasibility trial

Aileen O’Brien, Julia Hutchinson, Nik Bin Fauzi, Michael Abbott, James Railton, Darren Bell, Sarah White, Jared Smith, Simon Riches

There is evidence that both hypnotherapy and virtual reality (VR) can be helpful in reducing perceived stress in the general population. This is a feasibility and acceptability…

Acceptability, feasibility, and preliminary evaluation of an animated VR game for reducing mental health stigma in health-care students and trainees: a mixed-method study

Raul Szekely, Oliver Mason, David M. Frohlich, Elizabeth Alexandra Barley

This study aims to pilot-test the acceptability, feasibility, preliminary efficacy and user experience of an animated virtual reality (VR) game (“Goliath: Playing with Reality”…

The “Silent Firefighters”: an examination and evaluation of peer support sessions for medical laboratory professionals in Canada

Rosina E. Mete, Brandon Djukic, Christine Nielsen

The Canadian Society for Medical Laboratory Science (CSMLS) Peer Support Project was a formal and virtual peer support group pilot for medical laboratory professionals in Canada…

Digital applications potential to support the mental well-being of nurses: an integrative review

James Hindman, Joel Zugai, Toby Raeburn

Nurses work in a wide range of roles and settings, each with inherent stressors that can impact mental well-being. High levels of stress, burnout and clinical errors have been…

A digital positive psychology intervention for college student mental health and health behaviors

Duke Biber, Ashlee Davis

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the impact of a 10-week positive psychology course on college student stress, anxiety, self-compassion, resilience and health behaviors.