Enhancing Prospective Thinking in Early Recovery (RENTS)

The goal of this clinical trial is to use a novel virtual reality intervention to test for efficacy in reducing stimulant use and increasing abstinence, with concomitant increases in future self-identification, future time perspective, and delay-of-reward, in early recovering stimulant use disorder (StUD) persons. The main question[s] this trial aims to answer are: Will the Virtual Reality (VR) intervention decrease the number of stimulant use days? Will the VR intervention produce longer abstinence periods during follow-up visits? Will the VR intervention increase stimulant drug abstinence rates? Will the VR intervention increase future self-identification? Will the VR intervention increase self-reported future time perspective? Will the VR intervention increase preference for delayed rewards in a laboratory delay discounting task on the study day? Will the VR intervention produce gains in the behavioral effects of future self-identification, future time perspective, and delayed rewards at the 30-day and 6-month follow-ups? Researchers will compare the experimental and control groups to see if there are differences in the results for the questions outlined above.

All study participants are randomly assigned to a group prior to study enrollment. Participants will not be made aware of their group assignment.

Participants in this arm will receive the following interventions: Virtual Reality Park Virtual Reality Avatar

Both groups will receive a Virtual Reality Park experience, which is an empty park with no avatars. Only the experimental group will have a Virtual Reality Avatar experience, where they will see an avatar resembling themselves in a park setting.

Inclusion Criteria: Abstinence between ≥14 days and ≤1 year At least 18 years old Verbal endorsement of commitment to recovery Outpatient Psychotropic drugs for SUD-comorbidity Drug/alcohol abstinence ≥ 24 hours at the time of the study day visit English comprehension Exclusion Criteria: Unstable medical disorders Less than 18 years old Habitual drug use Mu-opioid drugs Smell/taste disorders Unstable psychiatric conditions Extravagant/elaborate face tattoos

Pre-determined participant IPD will be shared in accordance with the National Institutes of Health National Data Archive requirements and upon the consent of the study participant.

Data will be shared at the specified submission deadlines assigned by the National Institutes of Health (typically every April or October). Data will be available upon the discretion of the National Institutes of Health.

No individually identifiable participant data will be submitted to the National Data Archive. All collected participant data is de-identified, and will be made available for other researchers to use upon requests submitted through the National Data Archive portal, and approval from the principal investigator.