Predictors of Exposure Success in Public Speaking Anxiety

Completed

• Conditions: Performance Anxiety
• Interventions: Behavioral: Massed speech exposure session

• Registration Number: NCT02163148
• Lead Sponsor: University of California, San Diego

Brief Summary

Anxiety disorders are common and impairing. Although exposure therapy is one of the most effective treatments for anxiety, some individuals do not fully respond to treatment, and these individual differences are not well understood. Exposure therapy involves repeated, deliberate, safe engagement with a feared stimulus without the feared outcome occurring. This treatment is thought to work through a type of emotional learning called fear extinction. This study aims to look at links between fear extinction learning and exposure success, with the overall goal of better understanding who is likely to respond best to exposure therapy and why.

Detailed Description

Not available

Study Timeline

• Study Start: 2014-05
• Study First Submitted: 2014-06-11
• Study First Submitted QC: 2014-06-11
• Study First Posted: 2014-06-13
• Primary Completion: 2014-12
• Study Completion: 2014-12
• Status Verified: 2015-05
• Last Update Submitted: 2015-05-26
• Last Update Posted: 2015-05-27

Recruitment & Eligibility

• Status: COMPLETED
• Sex: All
• Target Recruitment: 24

Inclusion Criteria

• Score of at least 20 on the PRCS
• Age 18-55
• English fluency

Exclusion Criteria

• Psychotropic medication use in the past 4 weeks
• Past experience with exposure based therapy
• History of bipolar disorder, psychotic disorder, or substance dependence
• Current major depressive disorder of greater than moderate severity (defined as a score on the 9 item Patient Health Questionnaire of greater than 14)
• Clinically significant suicidal or homicidal ideation
• Non-removable ferrous metal
• Current significant neurological conditions
• History of loss of consciousness greater than 5 minutes duration
• Pregnant
• Claustrophobic

Study & Design

• Study Type: OBSERVATIONAL
• Study Design: Not specified

Arm && Interventions

Group	Intervention	Description
Public Speaking Anxiety	Massed speech exposure session	Intervention to be administered: One speech exposure session.

Primary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Change in peak Subjective Unit of Distress (SUDS) rating from first to fourth (last) exposure	90 minutes	Participants will complete 4 exposures during one 90 minute session. Change in the peak ratings on the final exposure relative to the first exposure will be the outcome measure.

Secondary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Change from baseline on the Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale (LSAS) at 2 weeks	Baseline, week 2
Change from baseline on the Personal Report of Confidence as a Speaker (PRCS) at 2 weeks	Baseline, week 2

Trial Locations

Locations (1)

UCSD Psychiatry Research; 🇺🇸 San Diego, California, United States