Presence experienced in smartphone-based exposure: First and third person perspectives

Various formats to deliver exposure stimuli have been developed, including video-based stimuli. Virtual reality-based exposure often utilizes a first-person perspective, which is associated with greater presence (e.g., feeling integrated in a virtual world) than third-person perspective. Yet, few have compared exposure stimuli presented in first-person versus third-person perspective. Thus, this study examined presence and anxiety levels associated with exposure video perspective. Participants (N = 18) completed a two-week video-based exposure treatment (i.e., watched one week of first-person perspective film and one week of third-person perspective film, counterbalanced). Participants reported anxiety and presence felt during the exposures. Results indicated greater presence was experienced during first-person videos than third-person ones. Anxiety levels did not differ between video perspective. An interaction between perspective and video order was found; those who watched third-person videos during week one reported more anxiety when presented first-person videos than those who watched the reverse order. Results support previous findings that more presence is reported with first-person than third-person perspective. More importantly, this study suggests an innovative way to sequence exposure stimuli so as to maximally sustain therapeutic levels of arousal over the course of treatment.