Hi All,
Some of you are probably aware of my infrequent posting on this site. My name is Alyson Bessell and I am a researcher at the University of the West of England in the Centre for Appearance Research. I am in the process of writing up a study which evaluated the effectiveness of a new online programme for helping people with a range of visible differences to cope better with the difficulties they face. The research data is still coming in but the study is now closed. I have some preliminary findings below for those who took part and any interested people. 18 of the people in my study had skin conditions, and of those 7 had psoriasis, so thankyou to any of you who were involved. Please read below for basic findings, and if you are interested in reading more please follow the link to the centre for Appearance Research website where a full report is available.
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LoginThank you also for the words of encouragement from several of you about our Appearance Matters conference last month. The conference was very popular and psorasis was a condition well represented in the research. We are hoping to do more research into the difficulties faced by those with psoriasis, but are waiting to find out if we get funding. Additionally, we are also interested in looking at the aspects that affect positive coping with psoriasis. If anyone is ever interested in being involved in research into appearance, please keep an eye on our website for details of upcoming studies.
Thanks everyone
Alyson
Research findings Some people who have a visible difference report difficulties such as staring and questioning by the public. These can be very distressing and in some instances may lead to feelings of anxiety, particularly in new social situations. Research has suggested that psychological interventions based on communication skills and addressing the assumptions made by others can be helpful. A new computer-based online psychological programme has been developed to help individuals who experience difficulties associated with having a visible difference. It consists of 8-weekly sessions focussing on social skills, and behaviour and thought change.
A study evaluating the effectiveness of this computer programme in comparison to standard face-to-face support was conducted with 83 people with various visible differences. The study found that the new computer programme was as effective as face-to-face intervention at providing psychological support to those with a visible difference. More data will be collected over the next six months, which will help us to evaluate the longer-term impact of both the computer intervention and the face-to-face intervention.
