Carlos Ferrás

How Can Geography and Mobile Phones Contribute to Psychotherapy

Interdisciplinary relationships between Geography and Psychotherapy are an opportunity for innovation. Indeed, scientific works found on bibliographic databases and concerning this theme are scarce. Geographical sub-fields, such as the Geography of Emotions or Psychoanalytical Geography have started to emerge, theorizing about and interpreting feelings, emotions, moods, sufferings, of the chronically ill or diversified social groups and sites. But a less theoretical and more practical approach, in the sense of proposing, predicting and intervening, is lacking; as well as research into the possibilities offered by communication technologies and mobile phones. In the present work, we present the results of a review of the most relevant scientific works published internationally; we reflect on the contributions of Geography and mobile phones to psychosocial therapies and define the orientation and questions that should be posed in future research, from the point of view of geography and regarding psychotherapy. We conclude that the production of georeferenced data via mobile phones concerning the daily lives of people opens great possibilities for cognitive behavioural therapy and mental health. They allow for the development of personalized mood maps that locate the places where a person experiences greater or lesser stress on a daily basis; they allow for a cartography of emotions, a cognitive cartography of the places we access physically or through the Internet, of our feelings and psychosocial experiences. They open the door to the possibility of offering personalized psychotherapy treatments focusing on the ecological-environmental analysis of the places frequented by the person on a daily basis.

Nationalism, identity and landscape in contemporary Galicia

In escaping the territorial trap of the nation-state, political geography has devoted mounting attention to sub-state geographies of nationalism. This paper traces the history, geographies, and politics of Spanish Galicia, in light of the contradictory processes of contemporary European integration and secessionism. After a review of sub-state nationalism, it contextualizes Galician nationalism within Spanish regionalism. It offers an historical overview that highlights the uniqueness of Galician culture and explicates the roots of the current nationalist movement. Finally, it delves into contemporary Galician politics, including its electoral dimensions, cyberpolitics, and banal nationalism, in which territory plays a decisive role.

Usability and Feasibility Study of a Remote Cognitive Behavioral Therapy System with Long-Term Unemployed Women

ABSTRACT We present the results of the use of a cognitive behavioral therapeutic intervention tool to improve the mental, physical, and social health of a group of long-term unemployed women in Spain. Method: We sent automated text messages (SMS) to the mobile phones of long-term unemployed women selected at random from public social services. During a 28-day intervention period, women received four daily automated text messages on her mobile phone on a predetermined hourly schedule. We measured depression symptoms at the start and end of the intervention and we analyzed qualitative data to determine the acceptability of a remote SMS program. Results: Depression symptoms using the Personal Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), went from an average of 13.8 at baseline to 4.9 at the end of 28 days (p = 0.89). One hundred percent of the women reported that they liked receiving the text messages and most found them helpful.

Design and acceptability of a psychosocial text messaging intervention for victims of gender-based violence

Mobile phones can produce detailed and personalized data to help diagnose, treat, prevent or rehabilitate women who are victims of gender violence. We sent automatic text messages, based on cognitive-behavioural therapy, to female victims of gender violence to assess the feasibility of the medium for mental health intervention. During the 28-day intervention period, each woman received four automatic text messages every day on a pre-established schedule. We evaluated symptoms of depression using the Personal Health Questionnaire-9. The Personal Health Questionnaire-9 decreased from an average of 14.8 at the beginning of the intervention, to 6.1 at the end of the text messaging period. All of the women reported that they liked receiving the messages, they found them useful and they felt that the messages had improved their health. Text messages are acceptable to women users who are recipients of public health and social services. Future research should focus more on the evaluation of the results and on how the specific content and aspects of text messaging improve health outcomes.

El presente y futuro de la terapia psicosocial para personas vulnerables en España. Qué pueden aportar los teléfonos móviles

We analyse international academic literature focused on mobile phones and psychosocial therapies. We identify articles published between 2000 and 2015 and available on Internet databases; and we highlight the scarce number of investigations focusing on vulnerable people. Literature specializing in psychosocial therapies address the usefulness of mobile phones in patients in general, with greater production from psychology and to a lesser extent from social work. We highlight the research developed in the USA and its residualness in Spain, where debates focus on the competences of the social worker in this field. We identify opportunities and limitations in terms of data privacy, access to and use of mobile phones; to reach isolated or poor populations or to facilitate access to social and health services. We conclude with possible orientations, hypotheses and goals for prospective investigation works.

Psychosocial therapies through mobile phones with women victims of gender violence

We present the results of a biopsychosocial therapeutic intervention with a group of women victims of gender violence and long-term unemployed in Spain. Our research is a usability and pre-feasibility study of a remote psychosocial therapy system using mobile phones and text messages. For this we send automatic text messages to mobile phones with content based on cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) in order to improve the physical, mental and social health of these women. The women participants were selected at random by the public social services of the Autonomous Government of Galicia, giving their informed consent to participate. Before starting the experience, we collect data through official social reports and conduct a face-to-face interview with each selected woman. The objective of the intervention has been to promote the biopsychosocial health of a pilot group of women victims of gender violence and diverse social pathologies such as drug addiction, mental disorders, prostitution or poverty.