Introduction
“The overwhelming finding was that technology and cyber communication has not only ‘‘crept’’ into traditional social work practice but, indeed, signifies a turning point” (Mishna et al, 2012). Whether we like it or not, technology touches almost every aspect of our lives and has become an essential relational medium for social and professional use. Coaching and therapy is increasingly delivered remotely, due to the demand for less travel and improvements in the capability and quality of the supporting technology.
ProReal is a new, purpose-built virtual reality platform for therapists and coaches who want to work remotely with clients. In addition to the remote working capability, it adds to the therapeutic process with a dynamic and creative visual representation of a client’s inner and outer world. In this article we describe the thinking behind the design, the applications for therapeutic use and the potential benefits for the therapeutic relationship.
This article first appeared in the Spring 2013 issue of TILT Magazine ~ Therapeutic Innovations in Light of Technology.
Click here to read the entire PDF version of the Unlocking the Client’s Internal Dialogue with Virtual Reality article.
David Tinker, MSc, is an executive coach living in London. He uses Sociodrama in his practice and will soon complete his diploma in Supervision with the London Centre for Psychodrama. He is Product Director for ProReal and responsible for design. For more information contact david@proreal.co.uk and visit www.proreal.co.uk
Access TILT Magazine archives: http://issuu.com/onlinetherapyinstitute/docs
