Abstract:

This paper presents and analyzes a virtual environment for exposure therapy. The lack of a viable solution to help treating pyrophobia, as well as the abundance of articles demonstrating the success of therapy with virtual media and virtual reality equipment represented the basis for the Pyrophobia-3D project. Developed as a 3D game, the application managed to produce conclusive results after testing with the help of 8 participants, of which 4 men and 4 women. The player is placed in a virtual environment that simulates a fire in an office space, the objectives being to extinguish the flames with the help of the fire extinguisher, but also to save as many documents as possible. The quantitative and qualitative results demonstrated that our approach was effective for reducing pyrophobia-related anxiety and we will continue to address this niche of pyrophobia therapy with other virtual scenarios.