Digital Coach to Support Exposure Therapy Homework for Anxious Youth
Key facts
- Who runs it
- Massachusetts General Hospital
- Where
- Belmont, Boston, and Cambridge, United StatesSee the 3 sites
- Trial code
- Status
- Not yet recruiting
- People taking part
- 50 people, planned
- Starts
- 1 Feb 2027
- Expected to end
- 31 Jul 2027
- Type of study
- Interventional, 2 groupsOne group gets an existing treatment, for comparison.
- Treatments tested
- BraveBot
- Self-Guided Exposure Therapy Homework
- Record updated
- 7 October 2026
Who can take part
- Age
- 12 years to 22 years
- Sex
- Women and men
- Healthy volunteers
- Cannot take part
The registry criteria, word for word
Show all 8 criteriaShow less
Who can take part
- Has a clinical or subclinical anxiety or related disorder (e.g., panic disorder, social anxiety disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder) for which exposure-based CBT is indicated
- Between the ages of 12 and 22 years at the time of enrollment
- Is either (a) currently receiving exposure-based CBT (or CBT in which exposure-based content is expected to be a core component) at a participating MGB outpatient program, or (b) on the waitlist for a participating program and expected to initiate exposure-based CBT in the near future
- Sufficient ability to communicate in English (study materials, measures, and the BraveBot interface are currently English-only). For minors, at least one parent/guardian must be sufficiently proficient in English to understand the consent information
- The youth and/or caregiver has access to a device that can receive SMS text reminders and open secure web links to complete exposure homework and brief post-exposure surveys
Who cannot take part
- Symptoms of suicidal or homicidal ideation, psychosis, or a non-anxiety-related primary mental health concern (i.e., where treatment for a disorder other than anxiety is indicated prior to exposure treatment, or independent exposure homework is not clinically appropriate as determined by the treating clinician). Examples include: current substance use or dependence requiring specialized or higher-level care that must be addressed before or instead of anxiety-focused exposure-based CBT; and current eating disorder severe enough to require intensive/specialized treatment such that exposure-based CBT for anxiety/OCD is not the appropriate primary focus
- Any other condition or circumstance for which treatment for another primary psychiatric condition is clearly indicated prior to anxiety-focused exposure-based CBT, or for which out-of-session exposure homework is considered unsafe or inappropriate; The investigators will also recruit up to 10 clinicians at participating programs who may use the BraveBot system with their patients (who have enrolled in the study independently) and complete brief baseline and end-of-study surveys
- Youth is unable to complete homework independently
Check if you might fit
Answer for yourself. This is not a decision: only the study team can say whether you can take part.
- Are you between 12 and 22 years old?
Where in United States
- McLean HospitalBelmont, United StatesContact: Regina Meredith Elkins, PhDNot yet recruiting
- Massachusetts General HospitalBoston, United StatesContact: Madelaine R Abel, PhDNot yet recruiting
- Harvard UniversityCambridge, United StatesContact: John R Weisz, PhD, ABPPNot yet recruiting
About the trial
What the trial wants to find out
This study is testing a digital tool called BraveBot for young people who are receiving cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for anxiety, OCD, or related problems. BraveBot is a computer program, not a person. It talks with youth through their phone or computer while they do "face-your-fears"-style exposure therapy homework that their therapist has assigned. Sometimes an exposure is done with BraveBot's real-time coaching, and sometimes on their own; after each exposure, youth answer a few short questions about how it went.
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Rather than dividing participants into separate groups, the study randomizes each individual exposure homework assignment. Every time a young person opens an eligible exposure, the system makes a 1:1 random assignment deciding whether that exposure is completed with BraveBot's support or independently (self-guided).
The main goal is to learn whether using BraveBot helps youth understand their exposure assignments better, put in more effort, stick with exposures when they are hard, feel more capable, and find exposures more helpful in "fighting back" against anxiety. The study also examines whether BraveBot increases the likelihood that assigned exposures are completed, and explores effects on anxiety symptoms and how safe, easy to use, and useful BraveBot feels for youth, their therapists, and parents.
BraveBot does not replace the therapist, diagnose, or design exposures; it only supports the homework the clinician has assigned, and is used under clinician oversight. A built-in safety system can detect possible risk-related language, pause the session, show crisis resources (such as 988), and notify the treating clinician. The study is conducted within routine outpatient psychology clinics at Mass General Brigham. Up to 40 youth ages 12-22 will take part.
The 2 groups in the trial
- BraveBot-Assisted ExposureTreatment being tested
Exposure instances randomized to this condition are completed with BraveBot, an LLM-powered audio-to-audio conversational assistant that provides real-time, structured coaching: clarifying the assigned exposure and its rationale, collecting SUDS ratings, encouraging persistence, prompting about safety behaviors and 'white-knuckling' at mid-exposure check-ins, and guiding brief post-exposure reflection.
Treatment: BraveBot
- Self-Guided ExposureExisting treatment, for comparison
Exposure instances randomized to this condition are completed independently by the youth (standard self-guided homework), without BraveBot coaching; the youth then completes the same brief post-exposure survey.
Treatment: Self-Guided Exposure Therapy Homework
Questions to ask the study team
- How often do I need to come in, and for how long each time?
- Are travel costs paid?
- Can I keep my own doctor?
- What happens if I want to stop?
Contact the study team: see the registry record → Contacts and Locations
Print a page for my doctorData and sources
- Registry record
- Listed on ClinicalTrials.gov.
- Official title
- Randomized Controlled Trial of the BraveBot Intervention as an Adjunctive Treatment for Young People With Anxiety and Related Disorders Receiving Outpatient, Exposure-Based Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
- Fit questions
- Built from NCT07666672, who can take part
- Record updated
- 7 October 2026