The efficacy of augmented reality exposure therapy in the treatment of spider phobia—a randomized controlled trial
Tomas Jurcik, Svetlana Zaremba-Pike, Vladimir Kosonogov, Abdul‐Raheem Mohammed, Yulia V. Krasavtseva, Tadamasa Sawada, Irina Samarina, Буранова Нилуфар Шавкатовна, Peter Adu, Nikita N. Sergeev, Andrei Skuratov, Anastasia Demchenko, Yakov Kochetkov · Frontiers in Psychology · 2024
The evidence for the use of Augmented Reality (AR) in treating specific phobias has been growing. However, issues of accessibility persist, especially in developing countries. The current study examined a novel, but relatively simple therapist guided smartphone-based AR Exposure Treatment (ARET) of spider phobia. Participants who reported symptoms of Arachnophobia were randomized into one of three comparison groups: ARET ( n = 20), traditional in vivo exposure therapy (IVET; n = 18) and a waitlist control group ( n = 17). Behavioral approach, subjective symptom measures, and galvanic skin response were assessed pre- and post-treatment. The study was concluded with a one-month follow up assessment. Results indicated that both treatment groups showed statistically significant and clinically meaningful improvements in behavioral approach at post-test that were maintained at 1 month follow- up, compared to the wait-listed group. Moreover, the treatment groups demonstrated significant improvements in subjective symptom report at 1-month follow up. Given its utility and potential accessibility, our findings suggest that future AR evaluation research could be conducted in therapy settings with minimal resources.