Virtual Reality Exposure Therapy for Severe Anxiety Disorders: Effectiveness and Acceptability in English-Speaking Quebeckers
Exposure therapy consists in approaching one’s fears without avoidance. It is known to be the best psychological intervention for anxiety disorders, which are some of the most common, debilitating mental health problems in Quebec. Recently, virtual reality exposure therapy (VRET) has been developed to address some of the accessibility and acceptability concerns of traditional exposure therapy conducted in “real life”—one of these being the need for consistently clear communication between therapists and patients. Through computer-generated, language-free environments, VRET helps individuals confront the virtual counterparts of their fears, without extensive therapeutic discussions. VRET’s potential to increase access to a first-line anxiety treatment for English-speaking Quebec residents is thus promising. Although the efficacy of VRET has been shown to be comparable to traditional exposure therapy, most of this research has been conducted in well-controlled laboratories focusing on subclinical anxiety. This project aims to examine the effectiveness and acceptability of VRET for severe symptoms of anxiety disorders in a non-sectorized mental health clinic, accessible to all Quebec residents. English-speaking Quebeckers with an anxiety disorder will receive twelve sessions of VRET and will complete symptom measures pre- and post-intervention. Results will be compared to symptoms of individuals who have already undergone traditional exposure therapy at the clinic. Demonstrating that VRET is as effective as traditional exposure therapy in a real-life and language minority context will help increase access to a gold standard intervention, using approachable, language-free technology. Lastly, themes will be extracted from participants’ feedback to compare the treatments’ perceived accessibility and acceptability
Outputs
Pilot and early results dissemination: Pilot data (2 participants) and preliminary analyses (8 participants) were presented at the McGill University Health Centre Research Days (2023 and 2025) as part of research dissemination and recruitment efforts.
Conference presentations: The project was presented at the First Annual Conference in Digital Mental Health (Québec), showcasing the technology and its clinical applications to researchers and healthcare professionals.
Future outputs planned: In line with the original proposal, the project is expected to produce two peer-reviewed publications, two out-of-province conference presentations, and one clinical workshop on integrating virtual reality into exposure therapy practice.
Knowledge mobilization and media coverage: The project has been featured in multiple media outlets, including La Presse, 98.5 FM Radio Textos, CBC Radio Noon Quebec, CBC Daybreak Montreal, and Y’a du monde à messe (Télé-Québec) (broadcast scheduled June 6, 2025).