Virtual Reality Exposure Therapy in the Treatment of Anxiety Disorders
Authors:
Jonathan Gershon - Department of Psychology, Emory University
and Virtually Better, Inc., Georgia
Page Anderson - Virtually Better, Inc., Georgia
Ken Graap - Department of Psychology, Emory University and
Virtually Better, Inc., Georgia
Elana Zimand - Virtually Better, Inc., Georgia
Larry Hodges - College of Computing, Georgia Institute of
Technology
Barbara O. Rothbaum - Department of Psychiatry, Emory University
Author
Note:
Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed
to Barbara O. Rothbaum, Ph.D., Department of Psychiatry, Emory
University School of Medicine, 1365 Clifton Road, Atlanta,
GA 30322; E-mail: brothba@emory.edu.
Drs. Rothbaum and Hodges receive research funding and are entitled to sales royalty from Virtually Better, Inc., which is developing products related to the research described in this article. In addition, the investigators serve as consultants to and own equity in Virtually Better, Inc. The terms of this arrangement have been reviewed and approved by Emory University and Georgia Institute of Technology in accordance with their conflict of interest policies.
Abstract:
Virtual reality (VR) is a relatively new technology that has
recently been applied to the field of clinical psychology.
Although this technology is still in its infancy, a number
of research reports have indicated that virtual reality exposure
therapy (VRE) can be effective in helping patients overcome
a number of anxiety disorders. Specifically, VRE has been
used efficaciously in the treatment of specific phobias and
posttraumatic stress disorder. This article provides an overview
of treatment outcome studies that have used VR to help treat
anxiety disorders, the rationale for VRÕs use, and future
directions for the field. In general, the use of VR as a tool
in exposure therapies is very promising, although further
research is clearly needed.
