@article{bogie_using_2024,

title = {Using virtual reality to improve verbal episodic memory in schizophrenia: A proof-of-concept trial},

author = {B. J. M. Bogie and C. Noël and F. Gu and S. Nadeau and C. Shvetz and H. Khan and M. -C. Rivard and S. Bouchard and M. Lepage and S. Guimond},

url = {https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85186986986&doi=10.1016%2fj.scog.2024.100305&partnerID=40&md5=a15c598b45b8f44a40b25fe5fd078a06},

doi = {10.1016/j.scog.2024.100305},

issn = {22150013 (ISSN)},

year  = {2024},

date = {2024-01-01},

journal = {Schizophrenia Research: Cognition},

volume = {36},

abstract = {Background: Schizophrenia is associated with impairments in verbal episodic memory. Strategy for Semantic Association Memory (SESAME) training represents a promising cognitive remediation program to improve verbal episodic memory. Virtual reality (VR) may be a novel tool to increase the ecological validity and transfer of learned skills of traditional cognitive remediation programs. The present proof-of-concept study aimed to assess the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary efficacy of a VR-based cognitive remediation module inspired by SESAME principles to improve the use of verbal episodic memory strategies in schizophrenia. Methods: Thirty individuals with schizophrenia/schizoaffective disorder completed this study. Participants were randomized to either a VR-based verbal episodic memory training condition inspired by SESAME principles (intervention group) or an active control condition (control group). In the training condition, a coach taught semantic encoding strategies (active rehearsal and semantic clustering) to help participants remember restaurant orders in VR. In the active control condition, participants completed visuospatial puzzles in VR. Attrition rate, participant experience ratings, and cybersickness questionnaires were used to assess feasibility and acceptability. Trial 1 of the Hopkins Verbal Learning Test – Revised was administered pre- and post-intervention to assess preliminary efficacy. Results: Feasibility was demonstrated by a low attrition rate (5.88 %), and acceptability was demonstrated by limited cybersickness and high levels of enjoyment. Although the increase in the number of semantic clusters used following the module did not reach conventional levels of statistical significance in the intervention group, it demonstrated a notable trend with a medium effect size (t = 1.48},

note = {Publisher: Elsevier Inc.},

keywords = {adult, article, clinical article, clinical assessment, Cognitive remediation therapy, cybersickness, disease severity, dizziness, Ecological treatment, Episodic memory, exclusion VR criteria questionnaire, feasibility study, female, Hopkins verbal learning test, human, male, mini international neuropsychiatric interview, nausea, outcome assessment, Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale, Proof of concept, questionnaire, randomized controlled trial, schizophrenia, scoring system, Semantic encoding, Semantics, task performance, training, Verbal memory, virtual reality, vr experience questionnaire},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{berube_parental_2024,

title = {Parental depression moderates the relationship between childhood maltreatment and the recognition of children expressions of emotions},

author = {A. Bérubé and R. Pétrin and C. Blais},

url = {https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85196266525&doi=10.3389%2ffpsyt.2024.1374872&partnerID=40&md5=ce03a1c39e709fc0f2c773d4f82f3a10},

doi = {10.3389/fpsyt.2024.1374872},

issn = {16640640 (ISSN)},

year  = {2024},

date = {2024-01-01},

journal = {Frontiers in Psychiatry},

volume = {15},

abstract = {Background: Sensitivity plays a crucial role in parenting as it involves the ability to perceive and respond appropriately to children’s signals. Childhood maltreatment and depression can negatively impact adults’ ability to recognize emotions, but it is unclear which of these factors has a greater impact or how they interact. This knowledge is central to developing efficient, targeted interventions. This paper examines the interaction between parents’ depressive symptoms and childhood maltreatment and its influence on their ability to recognize the five basic emotions (happiness, anger, sadness, fear, and disgust) in children’s faces. Method: The sample consisted of 52 parents. Depressive symptoms were measured by the depression subscale of the Brief Symptom Inventory-18 (BSI-18), and maltreatment history was assessed by the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ). Children’s emotional stimuli were morphed images created using The Child Affective Facial Expression (CAFE) database. Results: Our findings indicate that depressive symptoms moderate the relationship between parents’ history of childhood maltreatment and emotion recognition skills. Parents with higher depressive symptoms had lower emotion recognition accuracy when they had not experienced maltreatment. When childhood maltreatment was severe, emotion recognition skills were more consistent across all levels of depression. The relationship between depression and emotion recognition was primarily linked to recognizing sadness in children’s faces. Conclusion: These findings highlight how different experiences can affect parental abilities in emotion recognition and emphasize the need for interventions tailored to individual profiles to improve their effectiveness. Copyright © 2024 Bérubé, Pétrin and Blais.},

note = {Publisher: Frontiers Media SA},

keywords = {adult, anger, article, Beck Depression Inventory, Child, Child Abuse, child parent relation, childhood maltreatment, Childhood Trauma Questionnaire, Depression, disease severity, disgust, educational status, emotion, Emotion Recognition, Facial Expression, female, happiness, human, income, major clinical study, male, parent-child relationship, parental sensitivity, preschool child, questionnaire, recognition, sadness},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{belleville_efficacy_2023,

title = {Efficacy of a Therapist-Assisted Self-Help Internet-Based Intervention Targeting PTSD, Depression, and Insomnia Symptoms After a Disaster: A Randomized Controlled Trial},

author = {G. Belleville and M. -C. Ouellet and V. Békés and J. Lebel and C. M. Morin and S. Bouchard and S. Guay and N. Bergeron and S. Ghosh and T. Campbell and F. P. Macmaster},

url = {https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85140981202&doi=10.1016%2fj.beth.2022.08.004&partnerID=40&md5=261383919bbdaa149ac0eeb6d3317fc0},

doi = {10.1016/j.beth.2022.08.004},

issn = {00057894 (ISSN)},

year  = {2023},

date = {2023-01-01},

journal = {Behavior Therapy},

volume = {54},

number = {2},

pages = {230–246},

abstract = {This study aimed at evaluating the efficacy of an online CBT intervention with limited therapist contact targeting a range of posttraumatic symptoms among evacuees from the 2016 Fort McMurray wildfires. One hundred and thirty-six residents of Fort McMurray who reported either moderate PTSD symptoms (PCL-5 ≥ 23) or mild PTSD symptoms (PCL-5 ≥ 10) with moderate depression (PHQ-9 ≥ 10) or subthreshold insomnia symptoms (ISI ≥ 8) were randomized either to a treatment (n = 69) or a waitlist condition (n = 67). Participants were on average 45 years old, and mostly identified as White (82%) and as women (76%). Primary outcomes were PTSD, depression, and insomnia symptoms. Secondary outcomes were anxiety symptoms and disability. Significant Assessment Time × Treatment Condition interactions were observed on all outcomes, indicating that access to the treatment led to a decrease in posttraumatic stress (F[1,117.04] = 12.128},

note = {Publisher: Elsevier Inc.},

keywords = {adult, Anxiety, article, clinical effectiveness, clinical feature, cognitive behavioral therapy, controlled study, Depression, disaster, Disasters, disease severity, e-mental health, female, human, Humans, insomnia, Internet-Based Intervention, major clinical study, male, Middle Aged, natural disaster, physical disability, Post-Traumatic, posttraumatic stress disorder, psychotherapist, PTSD, randomized controlled trial, risk factor, Sleep Initiation and Maintenance Disorders, Stress Disorders, telepsychotherapy, treatment outcome, wildfire},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{scholten_baseline_2023,

title = {Baseline Severity as a Moderator of the Waiting List-Controlled Association of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy with Symptom Change in Social Anxiety Disorder: A Systematic Review and Individual Patient Data Meta-analysis},

author = {W. Scholten and A. Seldenrijk and A. Hoogendoorn and R. Bosman and A. Muntingh and E. Karyotaki and G. Andersson and T. Berger and P. Carlbring and T. Furmark and S. Bouchard and P. Goldin and I. Kampmann and N. Morina and N. Kocovski and E. Leibing and F. Leichsenring and T. Stolz and A. Van Balkom and N. Batelaan},

url = {https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85166386036&doi=10.1001%2fjamapsychiatry.2023.1291&partnerID=40&md5=c279c8b0ff2d3b4558c6f8803cdda0af},

doi = {10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2023.1291},

issn = {2168622X (ISSN)},

year  = {2023},

date = {2023-01-01},

journal = {JAMA Psychiatry},

volume = {80},

number = {8},

pages = {822–831},

abstract = {Importance: Social anxiety disorder (SAD) can be adequately treated with cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). However, there is a large gap in knowledge on factors associated with prognosis, and it is unclear whether symptom severity predicts response to CBT for SAD. Objective: To examine baseline SAD symptom severity as a moderator of the association between CBT and symptom change in patients with SAD. Data Sources: For this systematic review and individual patient data meta-analysis (IPDMA), PubMed, PsycInfo, Embase, and the Cochrane Library were searched from January 1, 1990, to January 13, 2023. Primary search topics were social anxiety disorder, cognitive behavior therapy, and randomized controlled trial. Study Selection: Inclusion criteria were randomized clinical trials comparing CBT with being on a waiting list and using the Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale (LSAS) in adults with a primary clinical diagnosis of SAD. Data Extraction and Synthesis: Authors of included studies were approached to provide individual-level data. Data were extracted by pairs of authors following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses reporting guideline, and risk of bias was assessed using the Cochrane tool. An IPDMA was conducted using a 2-stage approach for the association of CBT with change in LSAS scores from baseline to posttreatment and for the interaction effect of baseline LSAS score by condition using random-effects models. Main Outcomes and Measures: The main outcome was the baseline to posttreatment change in symptom severity measured by the LSAS. Results: A total of 12 studies including 1246 patients with SAD (mean [SD] age, 35.3 [10.9] years; 738 [59.2%] female) were included in the meta-analysis. A waiting list-controlled association between CBT and pretreatment to posttreatment LSAS change was found (b = -20.3; 95% CI, -24.9 to -15.6; P <.001; Cohen d = -0.95; 95% CI, -1.16 to -0.73). Baseline LSAS scores moderated the differences between CBT and waiting list with respect to pretreatment to posttreatment symptom reductions (b = -0.22; 95% CI, -0.39 to -0.06; P =.009), indicating that individuals with severe symptoms had larger waiting list-controlled symptom reductions after CBT (Cohen d = -1.13 [95% CI, -1.39 to -0.88] for patients with very severe SAD; Cohen d = -0.54 [95% CI, -0.80 to -0.29] for patients with mild SAD). Conclusions and Relevance: In this systematic review and IPDMA, higher baseline SAD symptom severity was associated with greater (absolute but not relative) symptom reductions after CBT in patients with SAD. The findings contribute to personalized care by suggesting that clinicians can confidently offer CBT to individuals with severe SAD symptoms.. © 2023 American Medical Association. All rights reserved.},

note = {Publisher: American Medical Association},

keywords = {adult, antidepressant agent, Anxiety disorder, article, avoidant personality disorder, clinical outcome, cognitive behavioral therapy, comorbidity, cycloserine, Depression, disease severity, female, hospital admission, human, Humans, Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale, male, meta analysis, paroxetine, phobia, Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses, procedures, psychotropic agent, randomized controlled trial (topic), Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic, semi structured interview, Social, social anxiety, social phobia, Structured Clinical Interview for DSM Disorders, symptom, systematic review, treatment response, Waiting Lists},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{aardema_evaluation_2022,

title = {Evaluation of Inference-Based Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder: A Multicenter Randomized Controlled Trial with Three Treatment Modalities},

author = {F. Aardema and S. Bouchard and D. Koszycki and M. E. Lavoie and J. -S. Audet and K. O'Connor},

url = {https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85131012874&doi=10.1159%2f000524425&partnerID=40&md5=ff9a6095068e094c394e952eca4ca318},

doi = {10.1159/000524425},

issn = {00333190 (ISSN)},

year  = {2022},

date = {2022-01-01},

journal = {Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics},

volume = {91},

number = {5},

pages = {348–359},

abstract = {Introduction: Inference-based cognitive-behavioral therapy (I-CBT) is a specialized psychological treatment for obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) without deliberate and prolonged exposure and response prevention (ERP) that focuses on strengthening reality-based reasoning and correcting the dysfunctional reasoning giving rise to erroneous obsessional doubts and ideas. Objective: The present study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of I-CBT through a comparison with appraisal-based cognitive behavioral therapy (A-CBT) and an adapted mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) intervention. Methods: This was a two-site, parallel-arm randomized controlled trial (RCT) comparing I-CBT with A-CBT. The MBSR intervention acted as a non-specific active control condition. Following formal evaluation, 111 participants diagnosed with OCD were randomly assigned. The principal outcome measure was the Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale. Results: All treatments significantly reduced general OCD severity and specific symptom dimensions without a significant difference between treatments. I-CBT was associated with significant reductions in all symptom dimensions at post-test. Also, I-CBT led to significantly greater improvement in overvalued ideation, as well as significantly higher rates of remission as compared to MBSR at mid-test. Conclusions: I-CBT and MBSR appear to be effective, alternative treatment options for those with OCD that yield similar outcomes as A-CBT. I-CBT may have an edge in terms of the rapidity by which patients reach remission, its generalizability across symptom dimension, its potentially higher level of acceptability, and effectiveness for overvalued ideation. Future research is needed to assess whether additional alternative treatments options can help to increase the number of people successfully treated. © 2022 The Author(s). Published by S. Karger AG, Basel.},

note = {Publisher: S. Karger AG},

keywords = {adult, aged, appraisal based cognitive behavioral therapy, article, clinical effectiveness, clinical evaluation, clinical outcome, clinical trial, cognitive behavioral therapy, Cognitive-behavioral therapy, controlled study, disease severity, female, human, Humans, inference based cognitive behavioral therapy, Inference-based approach, intermethod comparison, major clinical study, male, mindfulness, mindfulness-based stress reduction, multicenter study, obsessive compulsive disorder, Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, patient dropout, procedures, randomized controlled trial, remission, treatment outcome, treatment refusal, Yale Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{dugas_behavioral_2022,

title = {Behavioral Experiments for Intolerance of Uncertainty: A Randomized Clinical Trial for Adults With Generalized Anxiety Disorder},

author = {M. J. Dugas and K. A. Sexton and E. A. Hebert and S. Bouchard and J. -P. Gouin and R. Shafran},

url = {https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85133178888&doi=10.1016%2fj.beth.2022.05.003&partnerID=40&md5=4dd15547cbef29c5f1adc84169176c53},

doi = {10.1016/j.beth.2022.05.003},

issn = {00057894 (ISSN)},

year  = {2022},

date = {2022-01-01},

journal = {Behavior Therapy},

volume = {53},

number = {6},

pages = {1147–1160},

abstract = {Sophisticated multicomponent treatments for adults with generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) have been developed over the past three decades. Although these comprehensive treatments have produced encouraging results, they appear to be less efficacious than treatments for other anxiety disorders. The goal of this randomized controlled trial is to test a newly developed, highly focused treatment for adults with GAD: Behavioral Experiments for Intolerance of Uncertainty. Sixty (60) participants (51 women, 9 men), with a mean age of 34.60 years (range: 19 to 67 years), were randomized to either treatment (n = 30) or wait-list control (n = 30). Treatment consisted of 12 weekly 1-hour sessions in which participants learned to use behavioral experiments to test their catastrophic beliefs about uncertainty. Assessments were conducted at pre-, mid- and postcondition, and at 6- and 12-month follow-up. The primary outcome was the severity of GAD, and secondary outcomes were worry, depression, somatic anxiety, and intolerance of uncertainty. Using growth curve modeling, we found that (1) the treatment group was superior to the wait-list group in terms of change from pre- to posttest on all outcomes; (2) the combined sample (once wait-listed participants received treatment) evidenced large and significant decreases on all outcomes; and (3) treatment gains were either maintained or increased over the 12-month follow-up period of the study. The new treatment is a promising treatment option for adults with GAD considering that it may be as efficacious as more comprehensive evidence-based psychological treatments for GAD. © 2022},

note = {Publisher: Elsevier Inc.},

keywords = {adult, aged, antidepressant agent, Anxiety, Anxiety disorder, Anxiety Disorders, anxiolytic agent, article, behavior assessment, behavioral experiments, benzodiazepine, cognitive behavioral therapy, cognitive vulnerability, Cognitive-behavioral treatment, confusion (uncertainty), controlled study, dependent variable, Depression, disease severity, female, follow up, generalized anxiety disorder, growth curve, human, Humans, intolerance of uncertainty, major clinical study, male, mental disease, outcome assessment, patient worry, procedures, psychology, randomized controlled trial, uncertainty},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{moise-richard_real_2021,

title = {Real and virtual classrooms can trigger the same levels of stuttering severity ratings and anxiety in school-age children and adolescents who stutter},

author = {A. Moïse-Richard and L. Ménard and S. Bouchard and A. -L. Leclercq},

url = {https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85101691118&doi=10.1016%2fj.jfludis.2021.105830&partnerID=40&md5=e05dd193c76b1bad1d453aad4d87cc51},

doi = {10.1016/j.jfludis.2021.105830},

issn = {0094730X},

year  = {2021},

date = {2021-01-01},

journal = {Journal of Fluency Disorders},

volume = {68},

abstract = {Purpose: Many school-age children and adolescents who stutter experience the fear of public speaking. Treatment implications include the need to address this problem. However, it is not always possible to train repeatedly in front of a real audience. The present study aimed to assess the relevance of using a virtual classroom in clinical practice with school-age children and adolescents who stutter. Methods: Ten children and adolescents who stutter (aged 9–17 years old) had to speak in three different situations: in front of a real audience, in front of a virtual class and in an empty virtual apartment using a head-mounted display. We aimed to assess whether the self-rated levels of anxiety while speaking in front of a virtual audience reflect the levels of anxiety reported while speaking in front of a live audience, and if the stuttering level while speaking to a virtual class reflects the stuttering level while speaking in real conditions. Results: Results show that the real audience creates higher anticipatory anxiety than the virtual class. However, both the self-reported anxiety levels and the stuttering severity ratings when talking in front of a virtual class did not differ from those observed when talking to a real audience, and were significantly higher than when talking in an empty virtual apartment. Conclusion: Our results support the feasibility and relevance of using a virtual classroom to expose school-age children and adolescents who stutter to a feared situation during cognitive behavioral therapy targeting the fear of public speaking. © 2021 Elsevier Inc.},

note = {Publisher: Elsevier Inc.},

keywords = {Adolescent, anticipatory anxiety, Anxiety, anxiety assessment, Anxiety disorder, Anxiety Disorders, article, Child, clinical article, controlled study, disease severity, female, human, Humans, male, psychological rating scale, Public speaking, school, school child, Schools, self report, software, speech, Stuttering, virtual learning environment},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{savard_efficacy_2021,

title = {Efficacy of a stepped care approach to deliver cognitive-behavioral therapy for insomnia in cancer patients: A noninferiority randomized controlled trial},

author = {J. Savard and H. Ivers and M. -H. Savard and C. M. Morin and A. Caplette-Gingras and S. Bouchard and G. Lacroix},

url = {https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85121217599&doi=10.1093%2fsleep%2fzsab166&partnerID=40&md5=8c3390082d345b725c47465f96bb8e44},

doi = {10.1093/sleep/zsab166},

issn = {01618105 (ISSN)},

year  = {2021},

date = {2021-01-01},

journal = {Sleep},

volume = {44},

number = {11},

abstract = {Study Objectives: Cognitive-behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) is the recommended first-line treatment for cancer-related insomnia, but its accessibility is very limited in routine care. A stepped care approach has been recommended as a cost-effective way to make CBT-I more widely accessible. However, no controlled study has yet been published about the efficacy of this approach. The goal of this noninferiority randomized controlled trial (RCT) was to compare the short and long-term efficacy of a stepped care CBT-I (StepCBT-I) to a standard face-to-face CBT-I (StanCBT-I). Methods: A total of 177 cancer patients were randomized to: (1) StanCBT-I (6 face-to-face CBT-I sessions; n = 59) or (2) StepCBT-I (n = 118). In the StepCBT-I group, patients with less severe insomnia first received a web-based CBT-I (n = 65), while those with more severe insomnia received 6 face-to-face CBT-I sessions (n = 53). In both cases, patients could receive up to three booster sessions of CBT-I if they still had insomnia symptoms following this first step. Results: Results indicated that the Step-CBT-I group showed an Insomnia Severity Index score reduction and a sleep efficiency (on a sleep diary) increase that was not significantly inferior to that of StanCBT-I at all post-treatment time points. Analyses of secondary outcomes indicated significant time effects (ps <. 001) and no significant group-by-time interactions (ps from. 07 to. 91) on other sleep diary parameters, sleep medication use, depression, anxiety, fatigue, and quality of life scores. Conclusion(s): The efficacy of stepped care CBT-I is not inferior to that of a standard face-to-face intervention and is a valuable approach to making this treatment more widely accessible to cancer patients. Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT01864720 (https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT01864720?term=Savard&draw=2&rank=6; Stepped Care Model for the Wider Dissemination of Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy for Insomnia Among Cancer Patients). © 2021 Sleep Research Society 2021. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Sleep Research Society.},

note = {Publisher: Oxford University Press},

keywords = {adult, Anxiety, Anxiety disorder, cancer, cancer diagnosis, cancer patient, cognitive behavioral therapy, Cognitive-behavioral therapy, comparative study, complication, controlled study, cost effectiveness analysis, Depression, disease severity, drug use, European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire Core 30, fatigue, female, Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, human, Humans, insomnia, Insomnia Severity Index, long term care, major clinical study, male, malignant neoplasm, Middle Aged, Montreal cognitive assessment, neoplasm, Neoplasms, outcome assessment, procedures, psychotropic agent, quality of life, randomized controlled trial, remission, review, Self Care, short course therapy, sleep, sleep efficiency, Sleep Initiation and Maintenance Disorders, sleep pattern, stepped care, stepped care approach, Structured Clinical Interview for DSM Disorders, therapy effect, treatment outcome, web-based intervention},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{guitard_exposure_2019,

title = {Exposure to a standardized catastrophic scenario in virtual reality or a personalized scenario in imagination for Generalized Anxiety Disorder},

author = {T. Guitard and S. Bouchard and C. Bélanger and M. Berthiaume},

url = {https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85073896961&doi=10.3390%2fjcm8030309&partnerID=40&md5=b80f2e6602416c35dd8e36fd8b19c803},

doi = {10.3390/jcm8030309},

issn = {20770383 (ISSN)},

year  = {2019},

date = {2019-01-01},

journal = {Journal of Clinical Medicine},

volume = {8},

number = {3},

abstract = {The cognitive behavioral treatment of generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) often involves exposing patients to a catastrophic scenario depicting their most feared worry. The aim of this study was to examine whether a standardized scenario recreated in virtual reality (VR) would elicit anxiety and negative affect and how it compared to the traditional method of imagining a personalized catastrophic scenario. A sample of 28 participants were first exposed to a neutral non-catastrophic scenario and then to a personalized scenario in imagination or a standardized virtual scenario presented in a counterbalanced order. The participants completed questionnaires before and after each immersion. The results suggest that the standardized virtual scenario induced significant anxiety. No difference was found when comparing exposure to the standardized scenario in VR and exposure to the personalized scenario in imagination. These findings were specific to anxiety and not to the broader measure of negative affect. Individual differences in susceptibility to feel present in VR was a significant predictor of increase in anxiety and negative affect. Future research could use these scenarios to conduct a randomized control trial to test the efficacy and cost/benefits of using VR in the treatment of GAD. © 2019 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.},

note = {Publisher: MDPI},

keywords = {adult, anxiety assessment, article, avoidance behavior, clinical article, cognitive avoidance questionnaire, cognitive behavioral therapy, Cognitive exposure, disease severity, DSM-IV, Exposure in virtual reality, fatigue, female, gatineau presence questionnaire, generalized anxiety disorder, Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD), human, human experiment, imagination, immersive tendencies questionnaire, Likert scale, male, Middle Aged, mini international neuropsychiatric interview, penn state worry questionnaire, Personalized scenario, Positive and Negative Affect Schedule, Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale, Presence Questionnaire, psychotherapy, questionnaire, Simulator Sickness Questionnaire, Standardized scenario, task performance, test retest reliability, time series analysis, virtual reality},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{du_sert_virtual_2018,

title = {Virtual reality therapy for refractory auditory verbal hallucinations in schizophrenia: A pilot clinical trial},

author = {O. P. Sert and S. Potvin and O. Lipp and L. Dellazizzo and M. Laurelli and R. Breton and P. Lalonde and K. Phraxayavong and K. O'Connor and J. -F. Pelletier and T. Boukhalfi and P. Renaud and A. Dumais},

url = {https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85042420594&doi=10.1016%2fj.schres.2018.02.031&partnerID=40&md5=fe98669ecfdfb69d05cc9ebb58fecdcc},

doi = {10.1016/j.schres.2018.02.031},

issn = {09209964},

year  = {2018},

date = {2018-01-01},

journal = {Schizophrenia Research},

volume = {197},

pages = {176–181},

abstract = {Schizophrenia is a chronic and severe mental illness that poses significant challenges. While many pharmacological and psychosocial interventions are available, many treatment-resistant schizophrenia patients continue to suffer from persistent psychotic symptoms, notably auditory verbal hallucinations (AVH), which are highly disabling. This unmet clinical need requires new innovative treatment options. Recently, a psychological therapy using computerized technology has shown large therapeutic effects on AVH severity by enabling patients to engage in a dialogue with a computerized representation of their voices. These very promising results have been extended by our team using immersive virtual reality (VR). Our study was a 7-week phase-II, randomized, partial cross-over trial. Nineteen schizophrenia patients with refractory AVH were recruited and randomly allocated to either VR-assisted therapy (VRT) or treatment-as-usual (TAU). The group allocated to TAU consisted of antipsychotic treatment and usual meetings with clinicians. The TAU group then received a delayed 7 weeks of VRT. A follow-up was ensured 3 months after the last VRT therapy session. Changes in psychiatric symptoms, before and after TAU or VRT, were assessed using a linear mixed-effects model. Our findings showed that VRT produced significant improvements in AVH severity, depressive symptoms and quality of life that lasted at the 3-month follow-up period. Consistent with previous research, our results suggest that VRT might be efficacious in reducing AVH related distress. The therapeutic effects of VRT on the distress associated with the voices were particularly prominent (d = 1.2). VRT is a highly novel and promising intervention for refractory AVH in schizophrenia. © 2018},

note = {Publisher: Elsevier B.V.},

keywords = {adult, article, auditory hallucination, auditory verbal hallucination, clinical article, clinical effectiveness, computer assisted therapy, Computer-Assisted, controlled study, Cross-Over Studies, crossover procedure, disease severity, distress syndrome, female, follow up, Follow-Up Studies, hallucination, Hallucinations, human, Humans, male, Middle Aged, neuroleptic agent, outcome assessment, Outcome Assessment (Health Care), phase 2 clinical trial, physiology, Pilot Projects, pilot study, priority journal, procedures, psychotherapy, quality of life, randomized controlled trial, schizophrenia, Speech Perception, symptom, Therapy, therapy delay, therapy effect, treatment duration, treatment response, virtual reality, virtual reality exposure therapy},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}