Using computers as visual aids to enhance communication in therapy Mohiuddin Ahmed a, * , Charles M. Boisvert b a Northern Rhode Island Community Services, P.O. Box 1700, Woonsocket, RI 02895, and Taunton State Hospital, Massachusetts, USA b Department of Counseling and Educational Psychology, Rhode Island College, 600 Mt. Pleasant Avenue, Providence, RI 02908-1991, USA Available online 1 April 2004 Abstract Using computers as surrogate therapists and to provide cognitive stimulation through, for example, computer exercises or activities is widely reported in the computer-assisted therapy liter- ature. We, however, present a computer-assisted therapy technique, which primarily aims to enhance communication by visually representing the client’s spoken words via the computer’s word processor. Through this technique therapists can facilitate communication with clients and increase the likelihood of clients engaging in a reality-based discussion or engaging in a more focused discussion. Clients can also use handouts from the sessions to reinforce therapy goals. This therapy technique seems well suited for persons with schizophrenia or behaviorally disor- dered adolescents who may have difficulties with auditory processing or in communicating through the verbal modality, which is often required in a typical verbal mediated therapy session. We believe that clinicians within the context of their clinical practice can readily adopt this method of computer-facilitated therapy. However, the technique needs to be validated through further field-testing and controlled studies. Ó 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. Keywords: Computer-facilitated therapy; Information processing; Interpersonal communication; Therapy Traditional therapy aims to ameliorate personal distress and to promote positive mental health primarily through verbal interaction, which relies heavily on auditory 0747-5632/$ - see front matter Ó 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.chb.2004.03.008 * Corresponding author. Tel.: +1 401 235 7059; fax: +1 401 767 9177. E-mail address: mohiuddinahmed@comcast.net (M. Ahmed). Computers in Human Behavior 22 (2006) 847–855 www.elsevier.com/locate/comphumbeh Computers in Human Behavior