Open TSST VR: Psychobiological reactions to an open version of the Trier Social Stress Test in virtual reality.

Abstract

The Trier Social Stress Test (TSST) has become one of the most frequently employed laboratory stressors in human studies over the past decades. Several TSST adaptations for the presentation in virtual reality (VR) have been introduced and evaluated recently. Here, we describe a freely available version, the Open TSST-VR. In two independent studies, we evaluated subjective, endocrine, and heart rate responses to the Open TSST-VR compared to an active control condition. In study 1, 50 men were randomly assigned to the Open TSST-VR or the control condition. Compared to the active control condition, the Open TSST-VR induced higher levels of subjective stress and significantly more cortisol responders. In study 2, we employed a balanced within-subject design comparing groups of 46 men and women. Again, the TSST-VR induced more stress than the control condition and a stronger cortisol response, but there were also order effects suggesting that the TSST-VR is less suitable for within-subject comparisons. In both studies, we observed a substantial stress level (and cortisol responders) in the control condition indicating that future studies should further elaborate on non-stressful control conditions, either without any task or non-stressful active components. Overall, the Open TSST-VR is a versatile tool for collaborative experimental stress research that offers flexibility to a broad range of future research questions among various disciplines.