A Virtual Reality Brief Violence Intervention: Preventing Gun Violence Among Violently Injured Adults

Part of paid clinical trials in Richmond, Virginia.

Sponsor
Virginia Commonwealth University
Study ID
NCT06239285
Status
Recruiting
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Conditions

  • Violence

Eligibility Criteria

Sex
ALL
Age
18 Years - N/A
Healthy Volunteers
Not accepted

Interventions

  • Brief Violence Intervention VR (BVI-VR) — DEVICE
    BVI-VR is being developed as a hospital-based brief gun violence intervention program founded on the principles of positive psychology, motivational goal setting (via gameplay), psychoeducation, cognitive-behavioral therapy, and dialectical behavioral therapy. All steps of the BVI-VR emphasize being in control of making positive choices, and how to locate and leverage opportunities within their communities to improve their well-being. BVI-VR empowers patients to be the driver of their well-being
  • Treatment as Usual (TAU) — OTHER
    group will receive a community resource brochure (the same one that is provided at the end of BVI-VR). This brochure provides contact detail for services in the local area. These include organizations that provide mental health counseling, mentorship services, career development programs, organized community activities and sports, educational support, financial support, substance abuse programs, and resource assistance (e.g., food, housing, etc.).

Study Details

The overall aim of the proposed project is to develop and evaluate the effectiveness of Brief Violence Intervention-Virtual Reality (BVI-VR) for reducing firearm-related violence, re-injury, and mortality among victims of violence. Outcome measures of firearm-related violence will come from multiple sources, including criminal background checks, hospital data, state-level data, semi-structured clinical assessments, and self-report assessments. In addition, the study aims to understand the impact of BVI-VR on psychosocial mediators resulting in a reduction of firearm-related violence. This will include self-report surveys, neurocognitive assessments, and clinical assessments. The economic efficiency of BVI-VR as a firearm-related violence intervention will also evaluated. To achieve these aims, a randomized control trial (RCT) in a large sample of violently injured adults (18+ years) from VCU Health will be conducted.

Key Dates

Start date
Feb 26, 2024
Status verified
Jun 2026
Primary completion
Sep 30, 2026
Completion
Oct 31, 2026

Study Design

Enrollment
220 participants (estimated)
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
TREATMENT

Arms

  • Placebo Comparator: Treatment as Usual (TAU) Group
    The treatment-as-usual (TAU) group will receive a community resource brochure (the same one that is provided at the end of BVI-VR). This brochure provides contact detail for services in the local area.
  • Experimental: Intervention Group
    Patients randomized into the BVI-VR group will answer questions about the session content and the rationale for the content. Their responses will provide an estimate of engagement providing a better understanding of treatment fidelity.

Primary Outcome Measure

Firearm-related violence /The gun violence questionnaire [ Time Frame: Baseline self-report, 3- and 6-months post-randomization ]

Central Contacts

Locations (1)

FacilityCityStateZIPSite coordinators
Virginia Commonwealth UniversityRichmondVirginia232398
Nicholas Thomson
[email protected]
804-297-5740

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By research site
Virginia Commonwealth University· Richmond, VA

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