Comparing two sessions of exposure via virtual reality and imagery exposure therapy techniques in public speaking anxiety

In this thesis, the effects of two session virtual reality and two session imagery exposure on the participants' anxiety and avoidance scores were investigated in the treatment of public speaking anxiety. Accordingly, 30 participants with public speaking anxiety were randomly assigned to two groups, 15 of them VR and 15 of them imagery groups; decreases in anxiety and avoidance scores were examined. The data obtained from the research were collected using the demographic information form, the STAI-TX State and Trait Anxiety Form, and the Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale. The obtained data were analyzed using the Statistics Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) program. For in group comparisons Wilcoxon Signed Ranks Test was applied. When comparing the groups, a Mann-Whitney U Test was used to see the differences of changes in anxiety and avoidance scores of the groups. As a result of the research, it was determined that virtual reality exposure application was more effective than imagery exposure application in the treatment of public speaking anxiety. This result was found to be valid for both anxiety and avoidance scores. The results obtained from the research were discussed based on the literature. KEYWORDS: Exposure, imagery exposure, public speaking anxiety virtual reality