NCT07373223: VR-STEM

Virtual Reality Schema Therapy Exercises With Parent and Child Modes

Recruiting now NA Last updated 27 March 2026

What this trial tests

NA trial testing VR Schema Therapy Chairwork Exercise in Psychiatric Disorders in 30 participants. Currently enrolling.

Timeline

14 February 2026

Primary endpoint
15 September 2026

30 April 2027

Quick facts

Lead sponsor	University Medical Center Groningen
Phase	NA
Status	Recruiting now
Study type	INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation	na
Design	single group
Masking	none
Primary purpose	treatment
Enrollment	30
Start date	14 February 2026
Primary completion	15 September 2026
Estimated completion	30 April 2027
Sites	1 location across Netherlands

Drugs / interventions tested

• VR Schema Therapy Chairwork Exercise

Conditions studied

• Psychiatric Disorders — all drugs for Psychiatric Disorders →

Sponsor

University Medical Center Groningen

Who can join

Adults 18 to 65, any sex, with Psychiatric Disorders. Patients with the condition only — healthy volunteers not accepted.

Sponsor's own description

The goal of this clinical trial is to develop a Virtual Reality version of a Schema Therapy exercise and test its feasibility, acceptability and potential usefulness in people with psychiatric disorders (age 18-65). The main questions the investigators aim to answer are:

1. Are dialogue exercises with virtual reality mode avatars feasible, acceptable and useful?
2. How do patients experience VR schema therapy exercises (in terms of immersion, elicited emotions, therapeutic relationship or subjective efficacy) and are the exercises potentially effective (in terms of schema mode scores, self-criticism, self-compassion and self-esteem)?
3. In case of a potential 'effect', is this moderated by mental imagery ability?

The investigators hypothesize that 1) dialogue exercises with virtual reality mode avatars are feasible, ac-ceptable and useful according the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM; Davis, 1989); 2) patients experience high levels of immersion, elicited emotions and subjective efficacy, a strong therapeutic relationship, and show effects on schema mode scores and self-compassion and self-esteem scores; and 3) these effects are moderated by patients' mental imagery ability in such a way that patients with less mental imagery abilities benefit most.

The development of the VR version of the exercise will be done in collaboration with patients and therapists.

To test its feasibility, acceptability and potential usefulness, participants will be invited to receive one session of the exercise. During this session, they will complete some questionnaires before and after the exercise, and they will be asked about their opinions about and experiences of the exercise.

Publications & conference data

No peer-reviewed publications indexed yet for this trial.