An internet-based treatment for flying phobia using 360° images: A feasibility pilot study

Evaluation and Future Challenges in a Self-Guided Web-Based Intervention With and Without Chat Support for Depression and Anxiety Symptoms During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Randomized Controlled Trial

BACKGROUND

The COVID-19 pandemic has had an impact on mental health worldwide. Low- and middle-income countries were largely affected by it. Mexico was one of the most affected countries. Extended periods of lockdowns, isolation, and social distancing, among other factors, highlighted the need to introduce web-based psychological interventions to the Mexican population. In this context, Mental Health COVID-19 emerged as a self-guided web-based intervention (SGWI) aimed at adults to improve mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic.

OBJECTIVE

This study aims to assess the efficacy of 2 modalities of a self-guided intervention (with and without chat support) in reducing depression symptoms, generalized anxiety, community posttraumatic stress, widespread fear, anxiety, sleep quality, physiological and affective coping, and suicide ideation. In addition, it aimed to compare the moderating role of coping strategies, acceptance, and satisfaction in participants' symptom reduction. We hypothesize that the self-guided, chat-supported modality will show higher efficacy than the modality without chat support in achieving clinical change and better performance as a moderator of depression symptoms, generalized anxiety, community posttraumatic stress, widespread fear, anxiety, sleep quality, physiological and affective coping, and suicide ideation, as well as an increase in participants' satisfaction and acceptability.

METHODS

A randomized controlled trial was conducted. Data were collected from May 2020 to June 2022. We performed intrasubject measures at 4 evaluation periods: pretest, posttest, and follow-up measurements at 3 and 6 months. Differences between intervention groups were assessed through the Mann-Whitney U test for continuous variables and the chi-square test for categorical variables. Changes due to intervention were analyzed using Wilcoxon W test. Moderated regression analysis was performed to test the hypothesized moderating role of coping strategies, usability, and opinion about treatment on clinical change.

RESULTS

A total of 36 participants completed the intervention; of these, 5 (14%) were part of the SGWI group, and 31 (86%) were on the SGWI plus chat support (SGWI+C) group, which included a chat service with therapists. The perceived high complexity of the system for the SGWI group had a moderating effect associated with a lack of efficacy of the intervention regarding depression, but not when controlled for sociodemographic variables. A perception of lower helpfulness of the intervention was associated with poorer outcomes. Coping strategies did not show moderating effects.

CONCLUSIONS

Enhancing the utility of web-based interventions for reducing clinical symptoms by incorporating a support chat to boost treatment adherence seemed to improve the perception of the intervention's usefulness. Web-based interventions face several challenges, such as eliminating complexities in platform use and increasing the users' perceived utility of the intervention, among other issues identified in the study.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04468893; https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT04468893?tab=results.

INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT IDENTIFIER (IRRID)

RR2-10.2196/23117.

A Smartphone-Gamified Virtual Reality Exposure Therapy Augmented With Biofeedback for Ailurophobia: Development and Evaluation Study

BACKGROUND

To the best of our knowledge, no specialized research has been conducted to address ailurophobia (fear of cats) in Iran or globally. This has driven our project, along with the prevalence of ailurophobia and the absence of a gamified virtual reality exposure therapy (VRET) that incorporates affordable and easily accessible biofeedback (BF) tools. We hypothesize that a gamified VRET augmented with BF will yield more positive effects than a similar device lacking BF.

OBJECTIVE

This study primarily focuses on the development and preliminary evaluation of a smartphone-gamified VRET integrated with BF, targeting animal phobia, with a specific case study on ailurophobia. The secondary objectives are using affordable and readily available BF found in devices such as smart bands and smartwatches and creating a mobile virtual reality gamified app to improve patients' adherence to treatments while simultaneously enhancing the app's accessibility, scalability, and outreach.

METHODS

Evaluations encompassed 3 methods. First, we identified the tool's potential positive effects on phobia interventions, exploring 4 effects: intrinsic motivation, simulation of fearful situations, management of stressful circumstances without therapists' presence and mitigation of catastrophic thoughts, and preliminary effects on ailurophobia treatment. Participants were divided into BF and non-BF groups. Second, we gathered user preferences and opinions about the treatment. Third, we conducted heuristic evaluations using 44 heuristics from existing system usability scales assessing user interfaces, virtual reality platforms, and video games' playability. To interpret the data, mean scores; ANOVA, single factor; and ANOVA, 2-factor with replication were used. A total of 29 individuals were identified, of which 10 met the eligibility criteria or were accessible.

RESULTS

The smartphone-gamified VRET augmented with BF exhibited better results on the identified effects compared with the non-BF version and contributed to normalizing encounters with cats. Moreover, 41 of the 44 heuristics achieved a percentage above 62%, indicating its potential as a therapeutic product and its ability to enhance patient adherence to treatments. Patient preferences on the treatment and its strengths and weaknesses were provided for further improvement.

CONCLUSIONS

The tool has the potential to evolve into a comprehensive solution by incorporating various types of cats and their behaviors, simulating environments in which they are commonly found, and enhancing its appeal through an increased sense of adventure without inducing unrealistic fears. By adapting fear elements, the game can be tailored to treat various animal phobias. Phobia-focused games should avoid action and combat scenarios to prevent reinforcement of fear responses. After rigorous evaluation, further exploration is required to provide remote use beyond clinical settings.