Alleviating negative symptoms in schizophrenia using a virtual reality-based therapy targeting social reward learning (ENGAGE): Protocol for a randomised, controlled, assessor-blind pilot study

In individuals with schizophrenia spectrum disorders (SSD), negative symptoms (NS) are known to be associated with low quality of life, predictive of adverse long-term outcomes, and barriers to relevant life goals such as educational, vocational, and social attainment. As social cognition, processes...

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Veröffentlicht in:PloS one Jg. 20; H. 10; S. e0331632
Hauptverfasser: Donath, Valentin M., Ries, Emma Slebsager, Mariegaard, Lise, Kristensen, Tina Dam, Ebdrup, Bjørn H., Strauss, Gregory P., Fisher, Patrick M., Rostrup, Egill, Nordentoft, Merete, Hilker, Rikke, Melau, Marianne, Bockting, Claudi L., Albert, Nikolai, van Bennekom, Martine J., Ambrosen, Karen S., Glenthøj, Louise Birkedal
Format: Journal Article
Sprache:Englisch
Veröffentlicht: United States Public Library of Science 08.10.2025
Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Schlagworte:
Acceptability
Adult
Auditory perception
Care and treatment
Cognition
Cognition & reasoning
Computer applications
Diagnosis
Emotional behavior
Evaluation
Feasibility
Feasibility Studies
Female
Hallucinations
Health aspects
Health care
Humans
Learning
Magnetic resonance
Magnetic resonance imaging
Male
Mental disorders
Middle Aged
Paranoia
Pathogenesis
Patient outcomes
Pilot Projects
Psychiatric services
Psychotherapy
Quality of Life
Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic
Reinforcement
Reward
Schizophrenia
Schizophrenia - physiopathology
Schizophrenia - therapy
Schizophrenic Psychology
Signs and symptoms
Social discrimination learning
Social interactions
Tau protein
Technology application
Treatment Outcome
Virtual Reality
Virtual Reality Exposure Therapy - methods
Young Adult
Denmark
Nova Scotia
ISSN:1932-6203, 1932-6203
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Zusammenfassung:In individuals with schizophrenia spectrum disorders (SSD), negative symptoms (NS) are known to be associated with low quality of life, predictive of adverse long-term outcomes, and barriers to relevant life goals such as educational, vocational, and social attainment. As social cognition, processes of reward appraisal, and anticipation are impaired in individuals with SSD, these dysfunctions are likely to be intertwined with the pathogenesis of NS. Despite their debilitating nature, there remains a scarcity of treatment options for NS, as they, unlike positive symptoms, are largely unaffected by pharmacological interventions. Among indications that psychosocial interventions can reduce NS, more robust evidence is warranted for interventions that directly target NS. In light of the recent advances in Virtual Reality-assisted psychotherapy (VRT) for the treatment of positive symptoms in schizophrenia (i.e., paranoia and auditory hallucinations), this randomised, assessor-blind, controlled pilot study sets out to test the feasibility and acceptability of a novel VRT aimed at alleviating NS through targeting social reward learning (ClinicalTrials.gov registration ID: NCT06993831). The study will enrol 30 outpatients from the public mental health services of Greater Copenhagen, Denmark, who will be equally randomised to receive either treatment as usual (TAU) or TAU combined with 10 sessions of individual, VR-assisted psychotherapy. Feasibility and acceptability endpoints will be supplemented by clinical interviews and ecological momentary assessments (EMA) for indications of treatment efficacy regarding positive and negative symptomatology, functional outcome, and quality of life. Additionally, neurobiological and behavioural correlates of the intervention will be explored by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). This study has been registered at ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT06993831).
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ISSN:1932-6203
1932-6203
DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0331632