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Kim Bullock, MDClinical Professor, Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University
Foundations of Virtual Reality Exposure TherapyLesson 7 of 50
What is the Evidence for Virtual Reality Exposure Therapy?
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Kim Bullock, MDClinical Professor, Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences, Stanford UniversityLesson summary
Review the research base that underpins VRET as an evidence-based treatment across anxiety disorders, phobias and PTSD, and learn how to interpret that evidence for the clients in front of you.
Key learning points
- Effect sizes across conditions
- Comparisons with in-vivo exposure
- Interpreting the evidence for your clients
Research & further reading
- Carl, E. et al. (2019). Virtual reality exposure therapy for anxiety and related disorders: A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 61, 27–36.
Pooled randomised trials showing VR exposure outperforms waitlist and performs comparably to in-vivo exposure across anxiety disorders.
- Rothbaum, B. O. et al. (2000). A controlled study of virtual reality exposure therapy for the fear of flying. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 68(6), 1020–1026.
One of the original controlled trials: VR exposure matched standard exposure for fear of flying, with gains holding at follow-up.
- Recent review of virtual reality exposure therapy outcomes (2024). PubMed 39515186.
A current synthesis of VR exposure research, useful when clients or colleagues ask how recent the evidence is.