Efficacy of Attention Bias Modification vs. Placebo for Social Anxiety Disorder
Key facts
- Who runs it
- Tel Aviv University
- Where
- Israel1 site in 1 countryChoose a country to see its sites
- Trial code
- Status
- Recruiting
- People taking part
- 90 people, planned
- Started
- 15 Jun 2026
- Expected to end
- 30 Jun 2027
- Type of study
- Interventional, 3 groupsOne group gets an existing treatment, for comparison.
- Treatments tested
- Dot-Probe Attention Bias Modification (ABM)
- Placebo Training
- Record updated
- 24 June 2026
Who can take part
- Age
- 18 years to 65 years
- Sex
- Women and men
- Healthy volunteers
- Cannot take part
The registry criteria, word for word
Show all 14 criteriaShow less
Who can take part
- Adults aged 18-65 years
- Primary diagnosis of generalized Social Anxiety Disorder based on clinical evaluation, the MINI International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI), and a Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale (LSAS) score greater than 50
- Normal or corrected-to-normal vision without color blindness
- Sufficient Hebrew proficiency to complete clinical interviews, self-report questionnaires, and computerized cognitive tasks
Who cannot take part
- Previous participation in attention bias modification training using a dot-probe task
- Previous participation in eye-tracking-based attention training
- Concurrent pharmacological or psychosocial treatment, unless medication has been stable for at least 45 days
- Current diagnosis of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
- Current or past diagnosis of psychotic disorder or bipolar disorder
- Neurological disorder (e.g., epilepsy or traumatic brain injury)
- Current substance or alcohol use disorder
- Uncorrected visual impairment or use of multifocal glasses
- Severe suicidal ideation
- Pregnancy
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 18 and 65 years old?
This trial has no sites in United States.
It has sites in one country. Choose a country to see its sites.
About the trial
What the trial wants to find out
This study examines whether a computerized attention-training intervention called attention bias modification (ABM) can reduce symptoms of social anxiety disorder (SAD) in adults, and whether symptom improvement is specifically related to changes in attentional processing or to nonspecific factors such as expectancy and placebo effects.
The 3 groups in the trial
- Active ABM TrainingExisting treatment, for comparison
Mechanized Dot-Probe Attention Bias Modification (ABM) training attention away from threat faces. Participants identify the direction of an arrowehead presented at the location of neutral faces.
Treatment: Dot-Probe Attention Bias Modification (ABM)
- Placebo TrainingPlacebo, for comparison
Mechanized Intervention: Placebo Training, presenting a single, centered, non-face oval shape in each trial. Participants identify the direction of an arrowehead centrally presented.
- Wait-List ControlNo study treatment, for comparison
No Intervention / Wait-List, assessments at the same intervals as the active and placebo conditions without intervention in between.
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
- Placebo Effects in Dot-Probe Attention Bias Modification (ABM) Among Adults With Social Anxiety Disorder.
- Fit questions
- Built from NCT07666776, who can take part
- Record updated
- 24 June 2026