University of Twente Student Theses
Enhancing Compassionate Care in Digital Mental Health : Development of the Compassionate Technology Scale for Clients (CTS-C)
Zirnheld, A. (2025) Enhancing Compassionate Care in Digital Mental Health : Development of the Compassionate Technology Scale for Clients (CTS-C).
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| Abstract: | As digital mental health interventions (DMHIs) expand, there is a lack of client-centred tools to assess their impact on compassion, a core value in quality mental health care. To address this gap, we developed the Compassionate Technology Scale for Clients (CTS-C) and its short form (CTS-C-SF). Using Q-methodology, we explored mental health clients’ perspectives on technology in compassionate care. Sixteen participants sorted 35 statements based on the five elements of compassion (Strauss et al., 2016) and participated in semi-structured interviews. Factor and thematic analyses identified four opinion clusters: connection-seeking, feeling-focused, action-oriented, and authentic expression-oriented. Clients emphasized technology’s role in communication and expression, concerns about misattributing compassion, and the therapist’s primary responsibility in compassionate care. These insights informed the CTS-C, a 20-item evaluation scale with a 4-item short form. Findings revealed that clients see compassion as a human emotion linked to the therapeutic relationship, which technology facilitates, and that its use is user- and context-specific. This underscores the need to define compassion carefully and involve clients in DMHI design. Future research should validate the scale’s psychometric properties. The CTS-C enables evaluating and comparing how DMHIs influence the five elements of compassion. |
| Item Type: | Essay (Master) |
| Faculty: | BMS: Behavioural, Management and Social Sciences |
| Subject: | 77 psychology |
| Programme: | Psychology MSc (66604) |
| Link to this item: | https://purl.utwente.nl/essays/105075 |
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