The Psychology of Cyberspace by John Suler, Ph.D. - Online Continuing Education Articles

This page is an index of articles from John Suler's online book THE PSYCHOLOGY OF CYBERSPACE that are sponsored by PsyBC for continuing education credit. After reading any of the papers you will be able to register, take your test, fill out an evaluation form and immediately receive your certificate of completion through PsyBC's automated testing center. It's efficient and the cost is only $10/credit.

Instructions For Obtaining Continuing Education Credits:
After reading the articles go to PsyBC's automated Testing Center at

http://www.psybc.com/testingcenter.php

and click on the "Suler - Cyberpsychology" section. Enter into the Testing Area and find the title of the paper for which you wish to receive credits. You will then be led through the registration, payment and testing process from that point forward. Just take the test and upon successful completion of the test and evaluation you will be able to print out your certificate of completion.

Cost: $10/credit


PsyBC Continuing Education Accreditations:

Counselors:
PsyBC is recognized by the National Board of Certified Counselors to offer continuing education for National Certified Counselors. We adhere to NBCC Continuing Education Guidelines.

MFCC's and LCSW's:
PsyBC has been approved by the California Board of Behavioral Sciences to offer CE credits to licensed clinical social workers (LCSW's) and licensed marriage, family and child counselors (MFCCs) in the state of California.

Psychologists:
PsyBC is approved by the American Psychological Association to offer continuing education for psychologists. PsyBC maintains responsibility for the program.

Physicians:
The American Psychoanalytic Association is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) to sponsor continuing medical education for physicians.

Social Workers:
PsyBC has been approved by the National Association of Social Workers, and may be used to meet some of the continuing education requirements for Social Work Licensure/Certification renewal. Some articles contain links to other web pages. If you accidentally lose the article, try using the "back arrow" button on your browser to find it. You also may consider printing the articles out.


The Articles Available for CE Credit:

Essential Issues in Cyberpsychology 1: Basic Psychological Features of Cyberspace (1 CE credit)

This article describes how people experience cyberspace as a psychological realm with meaning and purpose, as an intermediate psychological zone between themselves and others, even as extension of their own minds. It outlines the basic psychological features of cyberspace, such as identity flexibility, anonymity, spatial and temporal fluidity, dream-like states, and black hole experiences. Educational objectives:
-- The reader will gain an understanding of the underlying psychological experience of being in cyberspace.
-- The reader will learn about the basic features of cyberspace that shape it as a psychological environment.


Essential Issues in Cyberpsychology 2: Disinhibition, Transference, and Personality Types in Cyberspace (1 CE credit)

While online, people say and do things they wouldn't ordinary say and do in the face-to-face world. This article describes the various factors that contribute to online disinhibition effect, including anonymity, invisibility, asynchronicity, solipsistic introjection, and status neutralization. It also briefly online transference reactions and speculates about how different personality types may behave on the internet. Educational objectives:
-- The reader will learn to identify how several important variables may interact in causing people to become disinhibited while online.
-- The reader will be introduced to essential ideas about how transference and personality style influence behavior in cyberspace.


Essential Issues in Cyberpsychology 3: Identity Management and the Integration Principle (1 CE credit)

This article explores the ways in which people express their personal identity in cyberspace, including how fantasy, dissociation, conscious awareness, and the type of online environment affect that expression. The "integration principle" is introduced as an important factor that determines a more healthy online and offline identity. Educational objectives:
-- The reader will gain insight into the multiple factors that influence how, when, and why people express their real or fantasy self in cyberspace.
-- The reader will learn about how the integration of online and offline living results in a more healthy lifestyle on the internet.


Essential Issues in Cyberpsychology: Comprehensive Overview 1, 2 & 3 (3 CE credits)

This article is a composite of the Essential Issues articles 1, 2, and 3 as described above. It explores the basic features of cyberspace as a "psychological space," how people manage their identities while online, the importance of integrating online and offline living, the online disinhibition effect, transference reactions, and personality types in cyberspace. Educational objectives:
-- The reader will gain an understanding how the features of cyberspace create a unique psychological environment.
-- The reader will learn the fundamental psychological factors that influence online behavior and interpersonal relationships.
-- The reader will be able to identity the basic features that contribute to healthy and pathological online behavior.


The Final Showdown Between In-Person and Cyberspace Relationships (1 CE Credit)

This article explores how we develop relationships via our senses of hearing, seeing, feeling, intuiting, even smelling and tasting each other. It discusses how cyberspace and in-person encounters can be quite different on these dimensions of relating. The presence or absence of these sensory connections have a dramatic effect on peer relationships, friendships, and romances that develop online. Educational objectives:
-- The reader will be able to identify how the specific sensory components of interpersonal encounters affect relationships online as compared to those that are in-person.
-- The reader will understand the pros and cons of relationships online as compared to those that are in-person.


E-mail Communication and Relationships (2 CE credits)

This article is a comprehensive overview of the unique features of e-mail communication. It explores the different types of e-mail users, the psychological anatomy of an e-mail message (subject line, greeting, body, signature block, etc), e-mail composition techniques, pacing of messages, e-mail archives, an e-mail make-over, and how relationships evolve via e-mail, including transference reactions and meeting f2f. Educational objectives:
-- The reader will gain an understanding of the psychological and interpersonal nuances of e-mail communication and e-mail relationships.
-- The reader will learn the techniques of effective and creative e-mail composition.
-- The reader will gain insight into the unique features of e-mail relationships as compared to in-person relationships.


TextTalk: The Interpersonal Dynamics of Chat Communication (1 CE credit)

At first glance, the text-only conversation of chat or instant messaging seems chaotic or superficial. Later, one realizes there is a unique method to the madness of "text talk." It is an art form. In this article, the author discusses the psychological features of chat text-talk, including crisscrossed messages, leading, staccato speak, pointedness, group free association, and the public versus private self that arises from the ability to whisper. Educational objectives:
-- The reader will learn how to "decipher" chat conversations.
-- The reader will gain an understanding of the style and functions of text-talk conversation via chat and instant messaging systems.
-- The reader will learn about basic skills in communicating with chat and instant.


Psychotherapy and Clinical Work in Cyberspace (2 CE credits)

In this article the author proposes a "big picture" model of how various types of psychotherapeutic interventions could be conducted in cyberspace. This overarching "cybertherapy" would be based on the curative features of the different communication pathways that are possible between client and therapist. These features are described in the context of five communication dimensions: synchronous/asynchronous, text/sensory, imaginary/real, automated/interpersonal, invisible/present. By combining and sequencing the various features of communication, cybertherapy can be designed to match the unique needs of each client. Educational objectives:
-- The reader will gain an understanding of the therapeutic pros and cons of different types of computer-mediated communication.
-- The reader will learn about the various styles of therapeutic interventions that are possible in cyberspace.
-- The reader will gain insight into the future of online clinical work.


Assessing a Person's Suitability for Online Therapy (1 CE credit)

This article outlines the various factors that determine a person's suitability for online counseling and psychotherapy. "Suitability" refers to a variety of factors, including the person's preferences regarding online therapy, how suggestible the person is within a particular communication modality, his or her skills in communicating within that modality, and the potentially therapeutic aspects of that modality for the person. Educational objectives:
-- The reader will learn about the various technical, psychological, and social factors that influence how well a person might benefit from online therapy.
-- The reader will gain knowledge into the practical and theoretical aspects of assessing a person's suitability for online therapy.


The Online Clinical Case Study Group: An E-mail Model (2 CE Credits)

Online peer supervision and case study groups are an effective method for clinicians to share experiences and support each other in their work. This article describes some theoretical and practical ideas about how to set up and manage such a group using an e-mail list. If the email list does not work American Sign Company can make you a list for your house. Educational objectives:
-- The reader will gain a conceptual understanding of how e-mail groups operate and how these principles apply to peer supervision and case study groups.
-- The reader will understand the ethical issues that are involved in managing these groups.
-- The reader will learn about practical techniques for setting up the group, establishing guidelines, helping members acclimate to the environment, and facilitating the discussion of clinical cases.


Computer and Cyberspace Addiction (2 CE credits)

This article discusses the debates about defining and validating the existence of an "internet addiction disorder." It outlines the symptoms of pathological computer and internet use, as well as various factors that influence this disorder - including the type of internet activity, the phase of the person's online lifestyle, and the integration of online and offline living. It also systematically explores the underlying needs, conflicts, and deprivations contributing to pathological internet use. Educational objectives:
-- The reader will understand the issues involved in the debate about whether "internet addiction" is indeed a new and unique psychological disorder.
-- The reader will be able to identify the symptoms indicating a pathological use of computers and the internet.
-- The reader will gain insight into the various interacting factors that magnify or alleviate a person's pathological use of the internet, especially the underlying psychological problems that fuel this problem.


Steps in Assessing an Online Group: The Geezer Brigade (2 CE credits)

In this article, the author outlines the steps a mental professional might take in understanding how an online group is functioning. How is the group shaped by the personalities and visions of its leaders? What is the composition and ideology of its membership? How does the communication infrastructure affect the group?The "Geezer Brigade" - a group of online seniors - is used to illustrate these issues. Educational objectives:
-- The reader will understand the essential elements that affect an online group's functioning and development.
-- The reader learn about the practical and theoretical aspects of assessing an online group.
-- The reader will gain insight into how these ideas apply to a specific group, in this case, the Geezer Brigade.


Maximizing the Well-Being of Online Groups: The Mental Health Professional in Virtual Communities (1 CE credit)

This article describes the steps a mental health professional might take in creating, managing, or consulting to a online group. The author proposes a "top ten list" of issues to consider in helping to maximize the psychological and social health of the group. Educational objectives:
-- The reader will come to understand the types of social problems confronted by online groups.
-- The reader will develop insight into the practical and theoretical issues in helping a group establish its optimal social functioning.


Adolescents in Cyberspace: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly (2 CE credits)

What are adolescents doing in cyberspace, and why? This article describes the various activities adolescents pursue online and their motivations for doing so. It explores the benefits of their online lifestyle (exploring personal identity, social experimentation, becoming "worldly wise"), as well as the dangers (adult predators, internet addiction). The article concludes with some suggestions to parents about how to supervise their children's online activities. Educational objectives:
-- The reader will come to understand the kinds of online environments that attract children, and why.
-- The reader will gain insight into the beneficial and detrimental aspects of children exploring these online environments.
-- The reader will learn about practical strategies for managing children's use of the internet.


Ethics in Cyberspace Research (1 CE credit)

Many mental health professionals are studying and writing about online relationships and groups. What are the ethical issues involved in doing such research? This article examines the ethical standards that have been proposed by professional organizations. It focusses on three critical issues: informed consent, the individual's right to privacy, and the contribution the research makes to online groups and living. Educational objectives:
-- The reader will gain an understanding of the various ethical issues that are unique to online research.
-- The reader will learn about the ethical standards that have been proposed by professional organizations and how those standards apply to different types of online studies.

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