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Effectiveness of a virtual reality-based cognitive training program on memory, executive functioning, and processing speed in individuals with substance use disorders: a quasi-experimental study

2025-09-19Journal article Open access
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datacite.subject.fosCiências Médicas::Ciências da Saúde
datacite.subject.sdg03:Saúde de Qualidade
dc.contributor.authorCaetano, Tânia
dc.contributor.authorPinho, Maria Salomé
dc.contributor.authorRamadas, Eduardo
dc.contributor.authorFreire-Santos, Filipa
dc.contributor.authorDixe, Maria dos Anjos
dc.date.accessioned2025-11-27T15:46:40Z
dc.date.available2025-11-27T15:46:40Z
dc.date.issued2025-09-19
dc.descriptionWe gratefully acknowledge the therapeutic team for their support in the intervention and the patients for their kind participation.
dc.description.abstractBackground: Cognitive deficits are frequently observed in individuals with Substance use disorders (SUD) and have been linked to poorer treatment outcomes and a heightened risk of relapse. We aimed to study the effectiveness of a 6-week virtual reality-based cognitive training program (VRainSUD-VR) on neuropsychological outcomes, specifically memory, executive functioning, and processing speed, as well as on treatment dropout rates in individuals with SUD. We hypothesized that adding VRainSUD-VR to treatment as usual (TAU) would lead to greater cognitive improvements compared to TAU alone. As a secondary hypothesis, we expectedVRainSUD-VRtoreducefalsememoriesrelativetoTAU. Methods: A non-randomized design with a control group, pre- and post-test assessments, and convenience sampling was employed. Patients (N = 47) were assigned to either the control group (CG), which received TAU (n = 22), or the experimental group (EG), which received VRainSUD-VR in addition to TAU (n = 25). Cognitive and treatment outcomes (e.g., dropout rates) were assessed at pre- and post-test. Results: Statistically significant time × group interactions were found for overall executive functioning [F(1,75) = 20.05, p < 0.001] and global memory [F(1,75) = 36.42, p < 0.001], indicating the effectiveness of VRainSUD-VR. No significant time × group interactions were found for most processing speed outcomes (p >0.05). Conclusion: VRainSUD-VR could be integrated into residential programs to improve general executive functioning, perceptual reasoning, and working memory, including visual working memory, as well as different aspects of global memory, such as visual, auditory, immediate, and delayed recall. Future research should explore the long-term effects of this intervention and consider additional potential mediating factors to gain a deeper understanding of the mechanisms underlying its effectiveness.eng
dc.description.sponsorshipThe author(s) declare that financial support was received for the research and/or publication of this article. This work was supported by UIDP/00730 – Center for Research in Neuropsychology and Cognitive and Behavioral Intervention (CINEICC).
dc.identifier.citationCaetano T, Pinho MS, Ramadas E, Freire-Santos F and Dixe MA (2025) Effectiveness of a virtual reality-based cognitive training program on memory, executive functioning, and processing speed in individuals with substance use disorders: a quasi-experimental study. Front. Behav. Neurosci. 19:1653783. doi: 10.3389/fnbeh.2025.1653783
dc.identifier.doi10.3389/fnbeh.2025.1653783
dc.identifier.issn1662-5153
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10400.8/14757
dc.language.isoeng
dc.peerreviewedyes
dc.publisherFrontiers Media
dc.relation.hasversionhttps://www.frontiersin.org/journals/behavioral-neuroscience/articles/10.3389/fnbeh.2025.1653783/full
dc.relation.ispartofFrontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience
dc.rights.urihttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
dc.subjectCognitive training
dc.subjectEffectiveness
dc.subjectExecutive functions
dc.subjectMemory
dc.subjectSubstance usedisorders
dc.subjectVirtual reality
dc.subjectVRrainSUD-VR
dc.titleEffectiveness of a virtual reality-based cognitive training program on memory, executive functioning, and processing speed in individuals with substance use disorders: a quasi-experimental studyeng
dc.typejournal article
dspace.entity.typePublication
oaire.citation.titleFrontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience
oaire.citation.volume19
oaire.versionhttp://purl.org/coar/version/c_970fb48d4fbd8a85
person.familyNameCaetano
person.familyNameRamadas da Silva
person.familyNameDixe
person.givenNameTânia
person.givenNameJosé Eduardo
person.givenNameMaria dos Anjos
person.identifier1829214
person.identifier794059
person.identifier.ciencia-id6D14-1939-1EDF
person.identifier.ciencia-idDB15-BD76-2B75
person.identifier.orcid0000-0002-9335-0602
person.identifier.orcid0000-0002-4857-6768
person.identifier.orcid0000-0001-9035-8548
person.identifier.ridB-9257-2018
person.identifier.scopus-author-id55885797900
relation.isAuthorOfPublicationb73e583d-bfd2-434e-b9f8-a43a1c6f1824
relation.isAuthorOfPublication24654502-ef1c-426e-b8d7-40157e88ca46
relation.isAuthorOfPublication591800d1-2c83-4227-af0a-b330a0acebac
relation.isAuthorOfPublication.latestForDiscovery591800d1-2c83-4227-af0a-b330a0acebac

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