The Experiences of Volunteer Counsellors Providing Crisis Intervention through Social Media: ‘I know I’m just a stranger on the internet’

Abstract

The internet offers new ways to engage young people with counselling support during periods of crisis. There is, however, much to learn about how best to use this resource and to train counsellors to work effectively in an online space. This qualitative study explores how volunteer counsellors at an Instagram based crisis service experienced their work, training, and supervision. Fifteen volunteer counsellors at the online crisis service were interviewed to explore their experiences of online work. Reflexive thematic analysis was used to identify key themes in the data relating to strategies for dealing with the opportunities and challenges of online work, the emotional experience of online counselling, and recommendations for supervision and training. The analysis suggested that there are unique opportunities and challenges to working online that required the active use of creative strategies, including managing a lack of visual and verbal cues; identifying disingenuous service users; utilising text language effectively, managing suicide risk; controlling the pace of conversations; gaining information from service users’ Instagram feeds; and using an informal peer support approach. The analysis also drew attention to significant emotional impacts on volunteer counsellors including the stress of managing suicide risk and seeing graphic images online, identifying too closely with their clients, and frustration at the limitations of brief online interactions. Despite the challenges of working online, volunteer counsellors identified benefits such as the life-enriching impacts of their work. In the area of supervision and training, online counselling was seen to offer and require unique training approaches, including learning about youth culture and digital communication. Ongoing support and connection were also seen as essential to being able to continue this work. This research has important implications for those developing or working in online crisis counselling services. It highlights the practical and emotional challenges of this work, but also shows how volunteer counsellors’ own expertise and knowledge can overcome these challenges to use this space effectively to reach young people in distress. The research calls attention to the need to provide adequate support for volunteer counsellors working in this area.