Does Text Therapy Really Work?

TIME examines the evidence on text-based therapy, featuring Ash's Derrick Hull, whose research found text/voice therapy about as effective as video teletherapy for anxiety and depression.

TIME

TIME: Does text therapy work? Featuring Ash's Derrick Hull

Key Finding

A 2024 study co-authored by Thomas Derrick Hull found text- or voice-based therapy to be about as effective as video teletherapy for anxiety and depression over three months.

Summary

In TIME, journalist Jamie Ducharme examines whether text-based therapy works, featuring clinical psychologist Thomas Derrick Hull — now founding Clinical Lead at Ash by Slingshot AI — who has studied text-based care for over a decade. The piece reports that messaging or voice-note therapy can be about as effective as video teletherapy for anxiety and depression, while noting ongoing debates about care quality and the therapeutic relationship.

Researchers

Ducharme, J. (2024, September 3). Does Text Therapy Really Work? TIME. https://time.com/7014816/does-text-therapy-work/

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ACKNOWLEDGMENT

Ash is not designed to be used in crisis. If you are in crisis, please seek out professional help, or a crisis line. You can find resources at www.findahelpline.com.