AI-Therapy- Overcome Social Anxiety

Description:

AI-Therapy is an online cognitive behavioural program designed to help individuals overcome social anxiety. You can complete a short online assessment on the website for free to help you decide if the program is suitable for you. The program itself then begins with a series of four more detailed questionnaires about you and your symptoms - and based on your responses the program will be tailored to your needs. You will then be guided through seven main sections, featuring lessons and exercises based on the principles of cognitive behavioural therapy. The program aims to teach you about the causes of your own anxiety and to help you to develop strategies to challenge unhelpful thoughts you may have. You will be encouraged to ‘experiment' in the real world - targeting thoughts behind your personal anxiety, as well as being introduced to a range of techniques to give you confidence in social situations and to prevent relapse. The program features audio and video messages from two clinical psychologists (Dr Helgadottir and Assoc. Prof. Menzies) and you will receive regular emails throughout. Frequent assessments and quizzes will help you to track your progress and upon completion you will complete the same questionnaires as at the beginning to measure your improvement. You can also download a personalised ebook for future reference.

Service URL:

https://www.ai-therapy.com

Agency Responsible:

AICBT Ltd (Developed by Assoc. Prof. Ross G Menzies and Dr Fjola Dogg Helgadottir).

Details

Format:

Website.

Intervention Type:

Psychological – CBT.

Course Length:

Long (more than 5 modules). Can be completed at your own pace over a period of up to 6 months. It's recommended you access once or twice a week.

Support Option:

Clinical support. Via audio and video messages from Dr Helgadottir and Assoc. Prof. Menzies. The program also provides automated support.

Target Audience

Primary Category:

Social anxiety.

Target Audience:

Adult.

Language:

English.

Access

Fee:

Fee-based. The program costs $149.99 (AUD), with no ongoing fees or charges.

Access:

Closed: Fee required. Subscription includes 6 months unlimited access to the program

Contact Details:

fjola@ai-therapy.com.  Further details can be found on the website: http://www.ai-therapy.com/#contact

Research evidence

Research Trials:

1

Research RCTs:

1

Outcome Summary:

The content of AI-Therapy is based on an earlier program (CBTpsych) which was specifically targeted towards social anxiety among those who stutter.  The content of the new program was generalised to make it suitable for anyone who experiences social anxiety. A recent study has trialled the new version of the program, AI-Therapy. Participants were a non-clinical sample of university students who received AI-therapy or were allocated to a wait-list. There was a significant reduction in social anxiety symptoms for those in the intervention group (p<0.01, d=0.72 on social interaction anxiety scale(SIAS) and p<0.001, d=0.82 on fear of negative evaluation scale (FNE)) while no such reductions were observed for the waitlist control group (SIAS: P=.13, Cohen d=0.26; FNE: P=.40, Cohen d=0.14) Additionally, there was a significant difference between the intervention and control groups. The intervention group experienced significantly more improvement in social anxiety symptoms compared to control (SIAS: P=.03, Cohen d=0.56; FNE: P=.001, Cohen d=0.97). Previously, two initial studies provided some evidence in support of the original CBTpsych program. The first study involved 2 participants with a diagnosis of social phobia, and both lost their diagnosis following treatment.  A further study involved 14 adult participants and those who completed the program showed a reduction in social anxiety symptoms, unhelpful thoughts and had improved quality of life. 5 out of 7 participants with a diagnosis of social phobia prior to treatment lost their diagnosis. A larger international open trial involving 267 participants showed that program completion was associated with large, statistically and clinically significant reductions for all assessment measures. 

Recommended rating, reviewer 1:

Recommended rating, reviewer 2:

Read more about Beacon's Smiley Rating System.

Research paper citations

McCall, H. C., Richardson, C. G., Helgadottir, F. D., & Chen, F. S. (2018). Evaluating a Web-Based Social Anxiety Intervention Among University Students: Randomized Controlled Trial. J Med Internet Res, 20(3), e91. doi: 10.2196/jmir.8630

Additional references:

Helgadottir, F., Menzies, R., Onslow, M., Packman, A., O'Brian, S. (2009) Online CBT II:  A Phase I Trial of a Standalone, Online CBT Treatment Program for Social Anxiety in Stuttering. Behavior Change, 26(4): 254-270

Helgadottir, F. D., Menzies, R. G., Onslow, M., Packman, A., & O'Brian, S. (2014). A standalone Internet cognitive behavior therapy treatment for social anxiety in adults who stutter: CBTpsych. J Fluency Disord, 41, 47-54. doi: 10.1016/j.jfludis.2014.04.001

Menzies, R., O’Brian, S., Lowe, R., Packman, A., & Onslow, M. (2016). International Phase II clinical trial of CBTPsych: A standalone Internet social anxiety treatment for adults who stutter. J Fluency Disord, 48, 35-43. doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jfludis.2016.06.002

Helgadottir, F. (2011) Bridging the gap in internet treatments for mental health: A fully automated online cognitive behaviour therapy for social anxiety for those who stutter. The University of Sydney. URL: http://ses.library.usyd.edu.au/handle/2123/7212