Table 1.

Summary of inclusion and exclusion criteria for selection of publications.

Inclusion criteria	Exclusion criteria
•Studies presenting an empirical comparison of telephone and face-to-face psychological therapy sessions •Studies based on situated examination of therapy sessions	•Studies considering only the telephone mode; or featuring no empirical comparison with face-to-face •Retrospective interview or survey-based studies •Not primary research (e.g. practitioner reflections, topic overviews, practice manuals/guides)
•Studies including a focus on interactional features of therapy	•Studies reporting only non-interactional features (e.g. clinical outcomes, cost effectiveness, attrition)
•Mental health as the focus of the therapy; though no requirement for clinical diagnosis among participants	•Studies addressing something other than mental health as the primary focus of the therapy (e.g. cancer, HIV/AIDS, infertility, smoking cessation)