Young people preferred a VR exercise, but greater therapeutic benefit remains unproven
A small experiment found both virtual reality and audio exercises acceptable, with short-term changes in selected measures of thinking and mood.
Based on the published abstract. The full paper may contain additional methods, results and limitations.
The 30-second takeaway
The virtual reality application was feasible to use and participants described it as engaging. Both formats showed improvements on selected measures after the exercises. However, the reported before-and-after results do not establish that virtual reality works better than audio, or that either format produces lasting improvement in depression or anxiety.
This abstract-based account describes a small experiment confined to a single session. It reports no severe adverse events, but one participant experienced distress during virtual reality; this does not establish broad safety.
What researchers found
Thought discomfort, cognitive defusion and state anger
Each exercise's post-exercise assessment versus its own pre-exercise assessment during the same session; no VR superiority established.
What participants experienced
The application turned a cognitive defusion technique into a brief game-like experience. Participants tried both formats in random order, completed questionnaires around each exercise, and then discussed their experiences in an interview comparing the formats.
Preference and outcomes differed
Interview themes favored virtual reality for novelty and engagement, while highlighting a need for clearer guidance and personalization. Audio showed changes across a broader range of measured outcomes, but that pattern alone does not prove audio was superior.
The original publication
A Virtual Reality-Based Cognitive Defusion Application for Youth Depression and Anxiety: Mixed Methods Experimental Study.
Bell IH, Li C, Thompson A et al.
JMIR Ment Health · 2025
- PubMed ID
- 40773283
- Record checked
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