Clinical trial NCT06086756: Virtual Reality Intervention for Speech Anxiety
Official title: The Influence of Mood on Response to Virtual Reality-Based Exposure for Public Speaking Anxiety
Study type: INTERVENTIONAL
Overall status: COMPLETED
Phase: NA
Conditions: Public Speaking
Speech Anxiety
Lead sponsor: Boston University Charles River Campus
Sponsor class: OTHER
First posted: 2023-10-17
Enrollment: 48
Sex: ALL
Minimum age (years): 18
Standard ages: ADULT
OLDER_ADULT
Accepts healthy volunteers: yes
Allocation: RANDOMIZED
Intervention model: PARALLEL
Primary purpose: TREATMENT

Brief summary: Exposure-based cognitive behavior therapy is an efficacious treatment for speech anxiety and has been delivered effectively in a virtual reality (VR) environment. The present study is designed to evaluate whether mood state moderates outcome to a brief VR exposure intervention.

Detailed description: The goal of this clinical trial is to compare outcomes of VR exposure therapy for college students with public speaking anxiety following a positive or negative mood induction. The overarching aim of the present study is to determine whether mood state prior to engaging in a brief VR exposure therapy session for public speaking anxiety impacts treatment outcomes.

The study involves three phases: (1) initial screening, (2) in-person assessment and brief exposure intervention for a subset of participants with elevated public speaking anxiety, and (3) a one-week follow-up assessment conducted online. Students who choose to participate and screen high on a public speaking anxiety scale will be assigned to a positive or negative mood induction condition prior to undergoing VR based exposure therapy. Public speaking and social anxiety outcomes are measured immediately post-intervention and one week later.

Researchers will compare participants given a positive mood induction to participants given a negative mood induction to see if public speaking anxiety outcomes differ.

Eligibility criteria: Inclusion Criteria:

* Self-report of 18 years of age or older
* Current student at Boston University
* Ability to read English to provide informed consent
* Familiarity with a computer keyboard and mouse or a touch screen device (e.g. phone, tablet).
* For Phase 2: speech anxiety scale score of ≥ 14 on the Personal Report of Communication Apprehension, Public Speaking Subscale (PRCA-PS)

Exclusion Criteria:

* Previous participation (i.e., no participant may take the survey more than once).

Primary outcomes:
measure: Public Speaking Anxiety
timeFrame: Comparison of pre-exposure scores to scores from post-treatment, approximately 2 week post-screen
Secondary outcomes:
measure: Valence
timeFrame: Comparison of pre-exposure scores to scores from follow up survey, 1 week post-exposure
measure: Social Phobia
timeFrame: Comparison of pre-exposure scores to scores from follow up survey, 1 week post-exposure
measure: Public Speaking Anxiety
timeFrame: Comparison of pre-exposure scores to scores from follow up survey, 1 week post-exposure
Other outcomes:
Locations:
city: Boston
country: United States
facility: Center for Anxiety and Related Disorders
state: Massachusetts
Study officials:
affiliation: Boston University
name: Elias Culver
role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR
References: