Exposure by pressing a button

Virtual Reality Exposure Therapy (VRET) for phobias and addictions

Authors

  • Marcus Täuber

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.30820/1664-9583-2023-1-19

Keywords:

virtual reality, virtual reality exposure therapy (vret), review, phobia, addiction, craving

Abstract

Absract: The use of exposure therapies is limited by the sometimes high effort that in vivo confrontations require. VRET (Virtual Reality Exposure Therapy) offers viable alternatives through controlled simulation of stimuli. VRET is therefore increasingly finding its way into psychotherapy and psychiatry. The overall level of evidence for VRET in specific phobias can be classified as very high. A major therapeutic challenge is the treatment of addictive disorders. The clinical benefit of VRET in the context of addictions has therefore been increasingly investigated in recent years. In various studies, a proof of concept could be shown that addicts react to the virtual confrontation with alcohol and other substances as well as gambling with increased addictive pressure. Concrete therapeutic concepts are currently being developed and investigated. The positive evidence base as well as technical advancements and lower acquisition costs speak for the spread of the application of VRET in psychiatric clinics and psychotherapeutic practices.

Author Biography

Marcus Täuber

Dr. Marcus Täuber ist promovierter Neurobiologe, Lehrbeauftragter an der Universität Wien sowie als psychologischer Coach in freier Praxis tätig. Als Mitgesellschafter der VR Coach GmbH ist er mit fachlich-wissenschaftlichen Aspekten von Virtual Reality für psychische Probleme betraut.
019-023 31216

Downloads

How to Cite

Täuber, M. (2023). Exposure by pressing a button: Virtual Reality Exposure Therapy (VRET) for phobias and addictions. Psychotherapie-Wissenschaft, 13(1), 19–23. https://doi.org/10.30820/1664-9583-2023-1-19

Issue

Vol. 13 No. 1 (2023): Psychotherapie in Zeiten der Digitalisierung

Section

Special Issue

License

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 Unported License.

This journal provides open access to its content in accordance with the basic premise that the free public availability of research benefits the exchange of knowledge throughout the world.

Authors wishing to publish in this journal agree to the following:

  1. The author/s retain/s the copyrights and consent/s to initial publication of the work in the journal under a Creative Commons Attribution licence, which allows third parties to use the work by citing the name/s of the author/s and this journal as initial publisher (in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 DE-Licence).
  1. The author/s can enter into additional contracts for the non-exclusive distribution (e.g. publish in a collection or book) of the version published in the journal, if the journal is cited as initial publisher.