ArticleFrontiers in psychology2023
Virtual reality aggression prevention treatment in a Dutch prison-based population: a pilot study.
Article in Frontiers in psychology, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 10 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
10 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- The use of virtual reality in forensic-correctional psychiatric settings: A systematic review.Psychiatry and clinical neurosciences · 2026Pooled it
- A systematic review of measures of emotion regulation in forensic settings.Frontiers in psychology · 2025Pooled it
- Impact VR: Building Socioemotional Resilience in Youth with Conduct Disorder.Prevention science : the official journal of the Society for Prevention Research · 2026Trial
- Immersive Technologies in Forensic Mental Health and Prison Settings: Scoping Review.JMIR mental health · 2026Article
- Triggering anger using a virtual reality social scene.Scientific reports · 2026Article
- Therapists and ward staff experiences of virtual reality-assisted aggression treatment in a maximum-security forensic psychiatric clinic.BMC psychiatry · 2026Article
- Reducing aggressive behavior in forensic inpatients with virtual reality aggression prevention training-intellectual disability: a pilot study.Frontiers in psychology · 2026Article
- An Affordances-Based Approach and Scoping Review of Virtual Reality Applications in Forensic Behavioral and Mental Health Assessment and Treatment.Research on child and adolescent psychopathology · 2025Article
- The effect of empathy intervention and VR exergames on social anxiety in left-behind children.Frontiers in psychology · 2025Article
- The application of metaverse in mental health.Frontiers in public health · 2025Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Background: Treating violent behavior in prisons comes with challenges, such as the inability to practice safely with triggering situations and motivational issues. A solution may be the use of Virtual Reality (VR). With VR, specific conditions or needs can be tailored for individual practice, it can enhance motivation and VR has proven to be a safe and effective tool in mental health treatment. Objective: A pilot study was conducted to test the acceptability, feasibility, and preliminary effects of VR Aggression Prevention Treatment (VRAPT) in a prison-based population. Methods: In total 17 detainees with aggressive behavior were included in this single-group pilot study. Acceptability and feasibility were assessed using qualitative measures for participants and therapists. Preliminary treatment effects were measured with self-report and observational measures on aggression, anger, emotion regulation, and impulsiveness. Results: Participants and therapists were predominantly positive about VRAPT. Participants rated the sessions with an average satisfaction score of 9.2 out of 10 (SD = 0.3). Qualitative data showed that participants reported having learned to respond more adequately to aggressive behavior and gained insights into their own and others' triggers and tension. The combination of VR and theory was experienced as a strength of the treatment, as well as the ability to trigger aggression in VR which provided insights into aggression. However, the theoretical framework was found to be too complex, and more aggressive and personal scenarios should be incorporated into the sessions. Self-reported aggression, anger, provocation, emotion regulation, and observed verbal aggression decreased and seemed to stabilize after the treatment ended, with small to medium effect sizes. Conclusion: VRAPT proved feasible and acceptable for most participants and therapists. An adapted treatment protocol called Virtual Reality Treatment for Aggression Control (VR-TrAC), will be used in a future RCT to investigate the effects of the treatment in a prison-based population.
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