Disclosure and Empathy in a Group Teletherapy Setting

Increased utilization after COVID-19, emerging effectiveness, and myriad benefits for clients and clinicians warrant further research on group teletherapy. Personal disclosure and empathy have been found to improve treatment effectiveness by increasing clients' abilities to function well in interpersonal settings. This study explored whether disclosure and empathy changed over time within group teletherapy for emerging adults. Group teletherapy notes were coded for initial disclosures, empathic responses, and similar disclosures to measure participants' levels of disclosure and empathy. Although participants made consistently frequent initial disclosures, engagement from fellow participants increased gradually through empathic responses and similar disclosures. This study reveals that group teletherapy may be a realistic modality for promoting interpersonal skills such as disclosure and empathy among emerging adults with mental illness.