Treatment of Major Depression: Effectiveness of Cognitive Behavior Therapy with an Internet Course as a Central Component

Cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) is moderately effective for depression, but it tends to be expensive and inconvenient for clients. This article describes an attempt to provide more cost-effective and convenient treatment for major depression by using the Internet to provide the bulk of the treatment. Nine adults with major depression participated in the study, and six of these individuals completed the treatment. The clients who completed treatment received a mean of 3.7 individual sessions and showed substantial improvement, equivalent to similar individuals who received far more individual sessions in studies of traditional CBT for depression. The results suggest that it is feasible, at least with some clients, to use the Internet to provide a major part of CBT for depression and to thereby minimize costs and inconvenience to clients.