Purpose : This study examined the effects of virtual reality exposure (VREX) and in vivo exposure (IVEX) on anxiety arousal and social anxiety during speech task.

Method : Twenty-three undergraduate and graduate students were assigned either in the VREX group (n=11) or in the IVEX group (n=12), respectively. Participants performed two 3-minute speech tasks in each group. In the second speech task, participants received video feedback (VF), in which they watched videos of their own performances. For the speech task, the participants of VREX group wore a head-mounted display and gave a speech to a male moderator in a virtual reality created with a 360-degree live-action video. The IVEX group gave a speech to the video. For anxiety arousal, a two-factor analysis of variance (group×time) was performed with the SUDS value of subjective anxiety as the dependent variable. Regarding the influence on social anxiety, a two-way analysis of variance (group×time) was performed with negative estimates for speech tasks (Speech Estimation Scale) and self-evaluation (Japanese version of the Speech Perception Questionnaire) as dependent variables.

Results : Regarding anxiety arousal, no interaction was shown for both the first and second tasks, but there was a main effect of time. Regarding the effects of social anxiety, there was no interaction between group and time, but there was a main effect of time.

Discussion : Both types of exposure evoked anxiety, but VREX was slightly milder than IVEX. When combined with VF, IVEX had a greater effect on social anxiety. In addition, the safety of the VR stimulation used in this study was confirmed. Regarding the applicability of VREX in the clinical setting, the introduction to IVEX and the possibility of co-medical implementation were discussed.

  This symposium was held in English as an independent symposium of the International Exchange Committee of JSBR (Japanese Society of Biofeedback Research), following another presented at the previous general meeting of the society. The three speakers gave their introductory presentations, with each of their views on “professionalism,” and also discussed the word “legacy” (something that should be inherited to the next generation), a word repeatedly used at TOKYO 2020, held in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. Sakakibara introduces the early days of experiments using heart rate variability (HRV) in Russia, in memory of Evgeny Vaschillo, who can be said to have started the whole era of research on HRV biofeedback. Here, Sakakibara explains the resonance phenomenon in the cardiovascular system, and the effect of paced breathing at the resonance frequency. He points out that the research findings provided by Vaschillo are the basis of the legacy that runs into the current flows of the different applied psychophysiology fields of today. Tokusa, who was originally a competitive cyclist selected several times for the annual National Sports Festival, retired from his competitive life after suffering a serious injury. Moving on to becoming an occupational therapist, he has been using various brain science studies to theoretically discuss how athletes should acquire the most needed knowledge/experiences to avoid injury and/or to overcome their injuries. Tokusa’s theories will hopefully be applied to the development of the next generation of competitive athletes. He also talks about the hardships he had to overcome when he was transitioning from one professionalism to another, and how he hopes to leave behind his wisdom as a legacy. Oikawa has been clinically applying a medical approach utilizing both mind and body signals projecting from the patients/clients, for many years in his two main fields of neurology and psychosomatic medicine. He introduces how he interprets and uses HRV biofeedback, which is one of his research themes, in the field of rehabilitation medicine he is currently working in. He also talks about how he is applying the same approach in the field of sports, including athletes with disabilities.