Spider Phobia
Conditions
Keywords
Gamification, Anxiety Disorder, Avoidance, App
Brief summary
Mobile applications are more and more considered when implementing programs for treating mental disorders. The study aims to reduce avoidance and fear of spiders in spider-fearful individuals by combining exposure principles with gamification elements (e.g. narrative background, level progression, points, feedback). We investigate the efficacy of the gamified app in a remote online-therapy context.
Interventions
BEHAVIORAL7-day exposure therapy via self-developed app according to (Haberkamp et al., submitted)
Confrontation with spiders via gamified app
BEHAVIORALTherapist-guided one-session online exposure therapy according to (Öst, 1989)
Massed exposure therapy over the course of one single session, applied in a remote-online context
Sponsors
Anke Haberkamp
Study design
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
SINGLE (Outcomes Assessor)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
18 Years to 65 Years
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion criteria
Participants must * be 18 years or older, * SPQ score ≥ 14 * BDI-II score ≤ 18
Exclusion criteria
Participants will be deemed ineligible if they do not meet the above inclusion criteria or * are allergic to spiders or bee stings, * are currently undergoing psychotherapeutic and/or psychopharmacological treatments, * are experiencing current psychosis, mania, or substance abuse, or * successfully complete 8 or more of 12 possible BAT steps at baseline (to ensure that participants are indeed spider fearful) * are at higher risk from Covid-19 or * participated in a pilot study in 2019.
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Change in avoidance behavior (Behavioral Approach Task; BAT) | Baseline; (after one-session exposure if applied); Post-treatment (1-week after baseline); 3-week follow-up (4-weeks after baseline) | Scores range from 0 (participant refuses to enter the room with spider) to 12 (participant holds the spider at least for 20 sec). |
| Change in spider fear: Spider-Anxiety Questionnaire (FAS) | Baseline; Post-treatment (1-week after baseline); 3-week follow-up (4-weeks after baseline) | The scale ranges from 0-108. High scores reflect high subjective levels and low scores low subjective levels of spider fear. |
| Change in spider fear (Spider Phobia Questionnaire; SPQ) | Baseline; Post-treatment (1-week after baseline); 3-week follow-up (4-weeks after baseline) | The scale ranges from 0-31. High scores reflect high subjective levels and low scores low subjective levels of spider fear. |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Change in arousal before and after playing the app | Before starting and immediately after completing the game | Seven-point rating scale scoring from 0 to 6: high scores reflect high levels and low scores low levels of experienced arousal; participants play twice a day (between 8 - 11 am and 4 - 7 pm); ratings are part of the app |
| Change in disgust before and after playing the app | Before starting and immediately after completing the game | Seven-point rating scale scoring from 0 to 6: high scores reflect high levels and low scores low levels of experienced disgust; participants play twice a day (between 8 - 11 am and 4 - 7 pm); ratings are part of the app |
| Change in anxiety before and after playing the app | Before starting and immediately after completing the game | Seven-point rating scale scoring from 0 to 6: high scores reflect high levels and low scores low levels of experienced anxiety; participants play twice a day (between 8 - 11 am and 4 - 7 pm); ratings are part of the app |
Other
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI) | Baseline, Post-treatment (1-week after baseline); 3-week follow-up (4-weeks after baseline) | Measures clinically relevant psychological symptoms. |
| Mobile Application Rating Scale (MARS) | Post-treatment (1-week after baseline) | Questionnaire assessing the quality of new user-oriented health applications |
| German version of the Client Satisfaction Questionnaire (CSQ-8) | (after one-session exposure if applied), Post-treatment (1-week after baseline); 3-week follow-up (4-weeks after baseline) | Standardised satisfaction measurement |
| Beck Depression Inventory II (BDI-II) | Baseline, Post-treatment (1-week after baseline); 3-week follow-up (4-weeks after baseline) | Measures severity of depression; The scale ranges from 0-63: 0-13 minimal depressive symptoms; 14-19 mild symptoms; 20-28 moderate symptoms; 29-63 severe symptoms. |
Countries
Germany
Outcome results
None listed