BAHRIA UNIVERSITY KARACHI CAMPUS

FYP PROPOSAL
IMMERSIVE TREATMENT FOR AEROPHOBIA DISORDER BY USING
VIRTUAL REALITY

Class :BS(IT)7-A
Date: 6-9-2022

Submitted By: Submitted To:

Maham Shabbir(007) Name:
Qazi Omaima khaliq(013)
Hasham Ahmed()
 ABSTRACT
Aerophobia is an extreme fear of flying in an airplane. People with aerophobia may be scared
about different aspects of flying, such as take-off, landing or getting locked in the plane. It’s very
common, affecting more than 25 million adults in the U.S. Psychotherapy can usually help
people overcome their fear and fly without extreme anxiety or panic attacks. Now here we
overcome this fear of flying using VR technology. Many people can work on overcoming their
fear of flying with psychotherapy. Usually healthcare provider may recommend Cognitive
behavioral therapy (CBT) and Exposure therapy .
Virtual reality is a simulated 3D environment that enables users to explore and interact with a
virtual surrounding in a way that approximates reality, as it is perceived through the users'
senses. We design VR 3D environment of airport and airplane .and also we add some sound
effect . so those people who are facing aerophobia in their life they might avoid flying at all
costs. This could mean missing family vacations or refusing to travel for work. They might
insist on other modes of transportation, such as cars, buses or trains — even if they’re less
convenient than flying. We try to overcome this by using VR .In VR people tour the airport or
airplane and faces all the scenarios that are happened in the airport and airplane .
Fear of flying is common. Research suggests it affects about 25 million adults in the U.S.
Aerophobia is most common in people between the ages of 17 and 34. This is a time in life when
significant changes occur, such as graduation, marriage or childbirth. People may be scared that
flying jeopardizes their life at such an important time. It’s possible for someone to fly without
anxiety for years, and then develop aerophobia.

INTRODUCTION
Virtual Reality (VR) is a computer-generated environment with scenes and objects that appear to
be real, making the user feel they are immersed in their surroundings. This environment is
perceived through a device known as a Virtual Reality headset or helmet.. There are three main
types of virtual reality used today to transform the world around us, including non-immersive,
semi-immersive, and fully-immersive simulations .Now a days VR are most useful in Digital
marketing ,Education ,Space and military, Entertainment, and healthcare.
So that’s why we are going to work on a immersive treatment like project. where we try to
control fear of flying which have a Detrimental effect on human mental health .In PAKISTAN
our Psychologist treat their patients using CBT . while on other country like AMERICA and
many other countries using VR technology to treat their patients.

PROBLEM STATEMENT
By the help of this immersive treatment we try to overcome fear of flying. because in daily basis
we were see altos of people faces fear of flying they lost a good opportunity .This could mean
missing family vacations or refusing to travel for work. They might insist on other modes of
transportation, such as cars, buses or trains.
 OBJECTIVE
This idea came from by our environment because in daily basis we were see altos of people
faces fear of flying and because of this fear they lost a good opportunity .This could mean
missing family vacations or refusing to travel for work. They might insist on other modes of
transportation, such as cars, buses or trains .So with the help of VR we try that adults and other
people who have a fear of flying to pay close attention to the positive part of the ideas is to
help them learn to plan positive activities take part and then soak up all the good feelings.

LITRETURE RIVIEW
All the lectures and articles that we have studied states that Aerophobia is the idea of fear that is
at a certain level of violence against the act of flying or even the thought. When the thought of
flying appears in the head, a state of anxiety occurs and the person can attribute it to a variety of
reasons. As the level of violence increases, anxiety can turn into a panic attack causing the
person to behave unconsciously.
In one article author who work as clinical psychotherapist, he pays a great deal of attention to
patients' references to airplanes, as they discuss their recent or forthcoming travels. He confesses
that he remain somewhat concerned about those patients who claim to experience no detectable
anxiety whatsoever about air travel. The third category of patients namely, those whose anxiety
about travel, even before the era of terrorism, could best be described as phobic in nature
represents a much greater challenge to clinicians. And yet, it seems that the very nature of the
airplane situation cries out for a psychodynamic analysis. It is to be hoped that developments in
the interface between modern psychology and modern technology will lead the way in helping
individuals to understand the origins of travel phobia more fully, so that airline travel need not be
such a source of crippling anxiety.
Fear of flying is a fear that can occur as a result of a single trauma as well as many external
factors coming together. Man is not born afraid to fly. This fear has later become a part of your
personality .If the flight phobia is at a severe degree, it is difficult for a person to overcome this
fear alone, but there are always some questions that one can ask himself.
 Why am I afraid to fly?
 When did I first start to be afraid to fly?

Who is at risk for aerophobia?

Aerophobia is most common in people between the ages of 17 and 34. This is a time in life when
significant changes occur, such as graduation, marriage or childbirth. People may be scared that
flying jeopardizes their life at such an important time. It’s possible for someone to fly without
anxiety for years, and then develop aerophobia.
What causes aerophobia?
Aerophobia usually doesn’t have a specific cause. It’s very rare for aerophobia to stem from a
traumatic experience on a flight. Specific triggers might include:
 News stories about terrorism, crashes or violence on airplanes.
 Take-off and landing.
 Thoughts about fire or illness spreading through the plane.
 Turbulence (bumps during the flight).

METHODOLGY
The efficacy of virtual reality (VR) exposure therapy was examined for the fear of flying. Virtual
reality exposure involved six sessions of graded exposure to flying in a virtual airplane.
 PROBLEM
Flying phobia (FP) might become a very incapacitating and disturbing problem in a person’s
social, working, and private areas. Psychological interventions based on exposure therapy have
proved to be effective, but given the particular nature of this disorder they bear important
limitations. Exposure therapy for FP might be excessively costly in terms of time, money, and
efforts. Virtual reality (VR) overcomes these difficulties as different significant environments
might be created, where the patient can interact with what he or she fears while in a totally safe
and protected environment—the therapist’s consulting room. This paper intends, on one hand, to
show the different scenarios designed by our team for the VR treatment of FP.
 Measures
It is a structured diagnostic interview designed to assess the history of occurrence of any anxiety
disorder then Participants were asked to rate their anxiety level on an eleven-point scale (0: no
anxiety; 10: extreme anxiety) during the exposure sessions. The target behavior (fear of flying)
was rated by the participants on a daily basis in terms of their degree of fear, avoidance, and
firmness of their main catastrophic thought. These ratings ranged from 0 (“None”) to 10
(“Extreme”).
 Built Scenario:

 At the Airport:
We are now at an airport’s boarding lounge. The patient can walk about but not interact. As in
the previous scenario, the therapist can modify time of day and weather. Furthermore, the
therapist can control the following events.
1) Updating of the flight information board: information about boarding departing planes is
heard through the airport megaphones, and the flights on the information board move upwards,
showing that the patient’s departure is close.
2) Planes taking off: the patient can observe how other planes take off (under the therapist’s
control) through the large window that overlooks the runway.
 3) People talking: two people converse about weather and the possibilities of having an air
accident.
4) Entering the plane, after the announcement of the imminent departure of the flight.

 On Board:
The patient is in his/her seat and cannot get up or move about the plane. He/she can interact,
though, with several objects – roll up and down the window’s blind, pull down and back the
front seat tray, pick up and turn the pages of a magazine placed on the front seat rack, listening to
three different radio channels at different volumes, fasten and unfasten his/her seatbelt. The
virtual body of the patient is different according to his/her gender. As in the previous scenarios,
the therapist controls time of day and weather, and also provokes different events:
1) Takeoff: After the captain’s welcome message and the air crew safety procedures, the plane
runs slowly to the runway’s head, engines roaring, and takes off.
2) Turbulence: the air crew informs that the plane has entered a zone of turbulence and requires
the passengers to fasten their seatbelts; the plane “bounces” randomly until the therapist decides
to end the turbulence; then, movement stops and the air-crew informs the passengers that they
can unfasten their seatbelts.
3) Landing: preceded by the captain’s message and the air-crew instruction of fastening
seatbelts; engine sounds increase, the sound of tires hitting the ground is heard, and the plane
reduces speed until stopping at the runway end.

EXPECTED RESULT
VR may help provide standardized clinical training in exposure therapy, making training easier
and more accessible. Practicing exposure therapy within VR could increase skills and decrease
fears about delivering exposure therapy. Increased therapist comfort with and competence in
exposure therapy will help therapists provide evidence-based treatment and counter patients’
fears about the therapy.
It can help patients learn and practice anxiety management skills and permits controlled, gradual
exposure, which minimizes distress and optimizes treatment success. Practically, VR is
increasingly affordable.
Exposure therapy is considered to be one of the most effective treatments for certain phobias. In
this type of treatment, you will work with the therapist to lessen your fears. With aerophobia you
can start by looking at pictures from the perspective of someone inside a tall building. There is
currently no cure for aerophobia, but antidepressant treatment, a form of psychotherapy, is
effective. Exposure treatment is considered first-line treatment for certain phobias. So that’s why
we are going to work on an immersive treatment like project. Where we try to control fear of
flying which have a Detrimental effect on human mental health.
 CONCLUSION
Aerophobia is nothing to be embarrassed about, but it is something to be honest about. It’s easy
to procrastinate on working fears like aerophobia. But if your life is inconvenienced or
diminished by not being able to fly, then it’s important to set goals for yourself. There is no
reason why you should have to work on aerophobia by yourself. Many professionals have
successfully helped people learn to manage their anxiety and achieve their travels, and there are
programs available that specifically target the fear of flying. When you feel less isolated in your
quest to fly, you are more likely to follow through with your goals and find the courage to make
progress and hold yourself accountable. It is understandable for those who have the fear to
experience difficulty in surpassing it. Some are hesitant to take the test while others could not
handle the situation properly if confronted by a real-life simulation of their problem.

REFERENCE
https://www.psycom.net/aerophobia-fear-of-flying

https://www.techtimes.com/articles/256986/20210212/acrophobia-solution-vr-based-app-reduce-fear-
heights.htm

https://www.flypgs.com/en/travel-glossary/aerophobia

https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/22431-aerophobia-fear-of-flying#:~:text=What%20is
%20aerophobia%3F,getting%20locked%20in%20the%20plane

https://www.npr.org/2022/06/09/1103923813/get-over-a-fear-of-flying-exposure-therapy

https://www.healio.com/news/psychiatry/20190320/appbased-virtual-reality-therapy-reduces-
acrophobia-symptoms

https://youtu.be/rQ9dBj6iRY4