This VR Phone App Is Helping People Overcome Their Phobias
Are you terrified of spiders but aren’t about to have creepy-crawlies tottering around your skin to get over it? Have no fear; virtual reality’s here to help you achieve a less scary version of your reality.
oVRcome, a virtual-reality smartphone app with a clever name, is designed to put people’s phobias to rest. And a randomized trial of 129 people conducted by the app’s New Zealand developers and researchers at the University of Otago, Christchurch has just confirmed that oVRcome is able to treat fears of flying, needles, heights, dogs, and spiders.
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The app, created by tech entrepreneur Adam Hutchinson, is available worldwide via the Apple App Store and Google Play Store. It uses exposure therapy—placing sufferers in the perceived presence of their objects of fear, without putting them in direct danger—to help them get used to the real deal.
With VR headsets on, users may find themselves in virtual simulations of high-rise windows or cliffs to build their tolerance for heights, walk close to a dog that won’t bite, or be surrounded by arachnids, among other environments.
A recent clinical trial, in which participants would track their progress by filling out weekly questionnaires, saw a 75% drop in phobia symptoms after six weeks. The findings from the study have been published in the Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry.
At the end of the program, symptoms marked by subjects as “moderate to severe” had their severities lowered to “minimal.”
Associate Professor Cameron Lacey, the study’s lead researcher, reports that participants have been so empowered after the six weeks that one person with a fear of flying plans to book a trip abroad with their family.
Another with a needle phobia has signed up for a COVID vaccine, while one participant with a fear of spiders isn’t daunted by the thought of one crawling around in their house. The latter even feels they may be able to get rid of the bug themselves.
The positive results tell researchers that VR and smartphone apps are viable mediums for self-assisted treatments that are not only accessible but friendly on wallets too.
[via Newshub and Stuff.co.nz, images via various sources]
