Self-guided virtual reality therapy for anxiety: A systematic review

Area of Science:

• Psychiatry and Mental Health
• Human-Computer Interaction
• Digital Therapeutics

Background:

• Virtual reality (VR) offers a promising avenue for treating anxiety symptoms and disorders.
• Current VR interventions for anxiety are predominantly therapist-guided, limiting accessibility.
• There is a need for effective self-guided VR therapy options.

Purpose of the Study:

• To systematically review the effectiveness of self-guided VR therapy for anxiety conditions.
• To evaluate user experience, including usability, acceptability, safety, and attrition rates.
• To identify future research directions for self-guided VR anxiety interventions.

Main Methods:

• A systematic literature search was conducted across major scientific databases (Cochrane Library, IEEE Explore, PsycINFO, PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science).
• Peer-reviewed articles on self-guided VR interventions for anxiety were included.
• Data were extracted and analyzed using a narrative synthesis approach.

Main Results:

• Twenty-one articles met the inclusion criteria for the review.
• Self-guided VR interventions demonstrated effectiveness in treating social anxiety disorder, public speaking anxiety, and specific phobias.
• Generally positive outcomes were reported for safety, usability, and acceptability, with low attrition rates. A lack of standardized user experience assessments was noted.

Conclusions:

• Self-guided VR presents an engaging and effective method for treating common anxiety conditions safely.
• Further experimental research is needed to explore its efficacy in underrepresented populations and long-term effects.
• Comparative studies evaluating self-guided VR against other self-help interventions (e.g., internet-based, bibliotherapy) are recommended.