Therapy for public speaking anxiety using mood treatments
Reward Processing and Exposure Therapy
This study is testing whether adding a positive mood treatment or relaxation technique before exposure therapy can help people with social anxiety and public speaking fear feel less anxious.
Quick facts
| Phase | Not applicable |
|---|---|
| Study type | Interventional |
| Enrollment | 94 (estimated) |
| Ages | 18 Years to 60 Years |
| Sex | All |
| Sponsor | University of California, Los Angeles Academic / other |
| Locations | 2 sites (Los Angeles, California and 1 other locations) |
| Trial ID | NCT06776991 on ClinicalTrials.gov |
What this trial studies
This clinical trial investigates the effectiveness of exposure therapy for individuals with social anxiety disorder and public speaking anxiety. Participants will be randomized to receive either a positive mood treatment or a relaxation treatment before undergoing exposure therapy. The study aims to determine how these preliminary treatments influence the success of exposure therapy, particularly in individuals who also experience anhedonia, which can hinder fear extinction. By addressing reward processing deficits, the trial seeks to enhance the efficacy of exposure therapy for anxiety disorders.
Who should consider this trial
Good fit: Ideal candidates are individuals diagnosed with social anxiety disorder who experience elevated public speaking anxiety and exhibit signs of anhedonia.
Not a fit: Patients who do not have social anxiety disorder or public speaking anxiety, or those who are currently on psychotropic medications that are not stabilized, may not benefit from this study.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this approach could significantly improve treatment outcomes for patients with social anxiety and public speaking anxiety.
How similar studies have performed: While exposure therapy is a well-established treatment, this specific approach combining mood treatments with exposure therapy is novel and has not been extensively tested.
Eligibility criteria
Show full inclusion / exclusion criteria
Inclusion Criteria: * Diagnosis of social anxiety disorder from the Structural Clinical Interview for DSM 5. * Elevated fear of public speaking, defined as a score of \>= 66 (+1SD from the mean of population norms on a scale of 17-85) on the Public Speaking Anxiety Scale (PSAS; Bartholomay, E. M., \& Houlihan, D. D. (2016). Public Speaking Anxiety Scale: Preliminary psychometric data and scale validation. Personality and individual differences, 94, 211-215), which is a self-report scale measuring anxiety of public speaking. * Low reward processing, defined as a score of \<56 (less than the population mean) on the Dimensional Anhedonia Rating Scale (DARS) (Rizvi, S. J., Quilty, L. C., Sproule, B. A., Cyriac, A., Bagby, R. M., \& Kennedy, S. H. (2015). Dimensional Anhedonia Rating Scale (DARS) \[Database record\]. APA PsycTests). * Medication-free or stabilized on psychotropic medications for a minimum standard length of time (1 month for benzodiazepines and beta blockers, 3 months for SRIs/SNRIs and heterocyclics). * Psychotherapy-free or stabilized on alternative psychotherapies other than cognitive or behavioral therapies that were not focused on their anxiety disorder for at least 6 months prior to study entry. * Age 18-60. * Fluent in English. * To conduct MRI version of fear conditioning task, must have no MRI contraindications. Exclusion Criteria (none of the following): * Recent suicidal ideation with intent or plan - defined as suicidal ideation with intent or plan in the past year. * Lifetime history of suicide attempts. * History of bipolar disorder, psychosis, intellectual disability, or organic brain damage. * Substance use disorder within the last 6 months. * Major respiratory, cardiovascular, pulmonary, neurological, or muscular-skeletal diseases. * Pregnant or planning to become pregnant for next 6 months.
Where this trial is running
Los Angeles, California and 1 other locations
- University of California, Los Angeles — Los Angeles, California, United States (Recruiting)
- University of California, Los Angeles — Los Angeles, California, United States (Recruiting)
Study contacts
- Principal investigator: Tomislav D Zbozinek, PhD — University of California, Los Angeles
- Study coordinator: Tomislav D Zbozinek, PhD
- Email: tzbozinek@ucla.edu
- Phone: 6027502348
How to participate
- Review the eligibility criteria above with your treating physician.
- Visit the official trial page on ClinicalTrials.gov for the most current contact information and recruitment status.
- Contact the listed study coordinator or principal investigator to request pre-screening. Pre-screening is free and never obligates you to enroll.