A New Way to Help Young People with Social Anxiety
Very Brief Exposure: Exploratory Development of a Novel Exposure Modality for Social Anxiety Disorder in Transition-Age Youth
This project is developing a new, quick way to help young people who struggle with social anxiety.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R21 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Children's Hospital of Los Angeles NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Los Angeles, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11137619 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
Social anxiety is a common challenge for many young people, especially after recent events, and current treatments don't always work for everyone. This project is creating a new, very brief approach called Very Brief Exposure (VBE) that has already shown promise in helping people with specific fears like spider phobia. VBE uses quick presentations of images related to fears, which can be done without a therapist and at a low cost. Our goal is to adapt this successful VBE method to help adolescents who experience social anxiety. We will develop the specific VBE intervention for social anxiety and also learn more about how it affects the brain.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal candidates for future participation in related studies would be transition-age youth and adolescents diagnosed with Social Anxiety Disorder.
Not a fit: Patients whose anxiety is not related to social situations or who do not fit the age criteria may not directly benefit from this specific intervention.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this new approach could offer a more accessible and effective treatment option for adolescents struggling with social anxiety, potentially reducing distress and improving their daily lives.
How similar studies have performed: Ten previous randomized controlled trials have established Very Brief Exposure as an effective treatment for specific phobias, showing it helps people tolerate feared situations.
Where this research is happening
Los Angeles, United States
- Children's Hospital of Los Angeles — Los Angeles, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Peterson, Bradley S — Children's Hospital of Los Angeles
- Study coordinator: Peterson, Bradley S
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.