One spider session: does fear stay away for months?
NCT ID NCT06255821
First seen Jun 24, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
This study tested whether a single session of facing a live spider can reduce fear and disgust, and if that benefit lasts up to three months. Fifty-nine people with spider fear participated. They were tested with the same spider and a new spider at different follow-up times to see if the fear reduction spreads.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only — not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- Exposure therapy (one session of graded in-vivo exposure with a spider)
- What this could lead to
- If successful, this could help refine exposure therapy for phobias by showing how long benefits last and whether they apply to new spiders.
- What could go wrong
- This is a small, completed study with only 59 participants. Results may not apply to everyone with spider fear, and the effect may fade over time.
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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Department of Behavioral and Clinical Neuroscience
Bochum, 44787, Germany