An interventional study of Immersive VR-Based Martial Arts Training and Club-Based Martial Arts Training in Conduct Disorder, Externalizing Behavior and Child Mental Health, sponsored by Islamic Azad University, Sanandaj. Completed at 1 site in Iran. Open to participants aged 7 Years to 10 Years. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2026-11-10.
Sponsored by Islamic Azad University, Sanandaj · Not applicable, Interventional, and Treatment
The goal of this clinical trial is to learn if martial arts training helps lower aggression in children with conduct disorder. It will also compare two ways of delivering this training: through virtual reality (VR) headsets and in a traditional gym. The main questions it aims to answer are:
Does martial arts training lower overall aggression in children with conduct disorder? Do the effects last 30 days after the training ends? Researchers will compare three groups to see if the training works. One group will do martial arts in VR. Another group will do martial arts in a gym. A third group will not do any extra exercise.
Participants will:
Take part in 24 training sessions over 8 weeks (3 times a week). Each session lasts 40 to 60 minutes.
Be assigned to one of the three groups by chance (like flipping a coin). Answer questions about their behavior at the start of the study, at the end of 8 weeks, and 30 days later.
This study is a three-arm, parallel-group randomized controlled trial (RCT) with baseline (T0), post-intervention (T1), and 30-day follow-up (T2) assessments. The trial is conducted in Tehran, Iran, in collaboration with child and adolescent mental health outpatient services and community counseling centers. Participants are randomly allocated in a 1:1:1 ratio to immersive VR-based martial arts training (VR-MA), club-based (real-world) martial arts training (Club-MA), or a no-exercise control group.
Randomization and Blinding:
An independent researcher generates the allocation sequence using computer-based randomization. Allocation is concealed using sequentially numbered, opaque, sealed envelopes (SNOSE) opened only after completion of the baseline assessment. Due to the nature of exercise interventions, participants and trainers cannot be blinded. However, outcome assessors and the data analyst are kept blind to group allocation. Families are instructed not to disclose group assignments to assessors.
Interventions:
Both intervention arms receive an identical training dose: 24 sessions across 8 weeks (3 sessions/week), with each session lasting 40 to 60 minutes. Both groups follow a standardized session structure: a 5-10 minute warm-up (light aerobic activity and dynamic stretching), a 25-40 minute skill and conditioning block (striking drills, footwork, and progressive combination sequences), and a 5-10 minute cool-down (structured breathing exercises, static stretching, and guided reflection emphasizing behavioral norms such as respect and self-discipline).
VR-MA Group:Participants use standalone Meta Quest 3S head-mounted displays (Meta Horizon OS) in a supervised indoor setting. Training content emphasizes combat sport simulation and target-based striking drills delivered through commercial applications (e.g., LES MILLS BODYCOMBAT, FitXR). The protocol emphasizes coach-led pacing, technique accuracy, and self-regulation, deliberately excluding external reward systems or gamification.
Club-MA Group: Training is delivered in a martial arts club setting under the supervision of two certified kickboxing/martial arts instructors. The protocol is standardized and progressive. The first three sessions introduce basic stances, guards, and fundamental punches/kicks. Subsequent sessions emphasize controlled combinations, footwork, and structured drills (e.g., bag work, pad/mitt drills). Verbal exhalation cues are used to coordinate breathing and movement.
Control Group: Participants do not receive any additional organized physical activity during the 8-week period. Families are instructed to maintain usual routines and refrain from starting new structured martial arts or VR training programs.
Safety Monitoring:
Participant safety is continuously monitored by trained staff. For the VR-MA group, children are screened for prior severe motion sickness, and staff monitor for nausea, dizziness, headache, distress, or unsafe movement patterns. Rest breaks are allowed, and sessions are paused or stopped if symptoms emerge. Headsets are sanitized between uses. All training sessions are offered free of charge, and basic sports attire is provided. Retention efforts include reminder calls to caregivers and flexible scheduling. Any adverse events or participant withdrawals are systematically documented and reviewed by the study coordinator.
Statistical Analysis Plan:
Analyses are conducted using SPSS (v29). Descriptive statistics are computed for each group at all time points. Assumptions are evaluated using Kolmogorov-Smirnov and Shapiro-Wilk tests for normality, and Levene's test for homogeneity of variance. The primary hypothesis-testing approach uses a mixed-design repeated-measures model (GLM) with Group (Control vs. VR vs. Gym) as the between-subject factor and Time (T0 vs. T1 vs. T2) as the within-subject factor. The Group × Time interaction is the main indicator of differential change across arms. Sphericity is assessed with Mauchly's test; when violated, Greenhouse-Geisser corrections are applied. Baseline-adjusted ANCOVA models are run separately for T1 and T2, with the corresponding baseline score (T0) entered as a covariate. For secondary outcomes (four subscales), multiplicity is controlled using Holm-Bonferroni adjusted p-values. Effect sizes are reported as partial eta squared (η²p).
101 studies on the registry are indexed under Conduct Disorder; 15 are open to participants now.
This study's enrollment of 306 is above the median of 124 across 80 interventional studies indexed under Conduct Disorder.
Browse Conduct Disorder studies →Islamic Azad University, Sanandaj is the lead sponsor of 29 studies on the registry; 2 are open to participants now.
Counted across the registry records on this site, refreshed daily.
Go through the criteria one by one — yes, no or not sure — and take the list to your doctor or the study team. Kept in this browser only.
Exclusion Criteria:
Underlined terms in the criteria open these too. Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
A reason a treatment, test or procedure should not be given to a particular person, such as an allergy, another illness or a medicine they take.
Contraindication
A reason a treatment, test or procedure should not be given to a particular person, such as an allergy, another illness or a medicine they take.
Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
Participants complete the standardized training program using a standalone virtual reality headset (Meta Quest 3S) within a supervised indoor setting. The training content emphasizes combat sport simulation and striking practice, including boxing-style engagements and target-based striking drills. Commercial applications are used to deliver structured, graded-intensity sessions. The training emphasizes coach-led pacing, technique accuracy, and self-regulation without external reward systems.
Behavioral: Immersive VR-Based Martial Arts Training
Participants receive the same training dose and session structure, delivered in a martial arts club setting under the supervision of two certified kickboxing/martial-arts instructors. The protocol is standardized and progressive, introducing basic stances, guards, and fundamental punches/kicks in the first three sessions. Subsequent sessions emphasize controlled combinations, footwork, and structured drills, including bag work and pad/mitt drills.
Behavioral: Club-Based Martial Arts Training
Participants do not receive any additional organized physical activity throughout the study during the 8-week period. Families are instructed to maintain their usual routines and to refrain from starting new structured martial arts or VR training programs during the trial.
An 8-week training program (24 sessions, 40-60 minutes per session) using Meta Quest 3S head-mounted displays. Delivered via commercial VR applications (e.g., LES MILLS BODYCOMBAT, FitXR) emphasizing combat sport simulation, striking practice, and target-based drills. Structure includes warm-up, skill/conditioning block, and cool-down with breathing exercises. No external gamification or reward systems are used.
An 8-week training program (24 sessions, 40-60 minutes per session) delivered in a martial arts club setting. Supervised by two certified instructors. Includes warm-up, skill/conditioning block (striking drills, footwork, bag/pad work), and cool-down with breathing exercises and guided reflection on behavioral norms.
Total Aggression Score
Aggression is measured using the Children's Aggression Questionnaire (CAQ). The CAQ is a multidimensional instrument assessing overall aggression and four subscales: verbal aggression, physical aggression, relational aggression, and anger/impulsive tension. Higher scores indicate greater severity of aggression.
Time frame: Baseline (T0), Post-Intervention (T1, Week 8), and 30-Day Follow-Up (T2)
CAQ Subscale Scores (Verbal, Physical, Relational, Anger/Impulsive Tension)
Individual subscale scores derived from the Children's Aggression Questionnaire (CAQ): verbal aggression, physical aggression, relational aggression, and anger/impulsive tension. Higher scores indicate greater severity in each domain.
Time frame: Baseline (T0), Post-Intervention (T1, Week 8), and 30-Day Follow-Up (T2)
Plan to share: No — The datasets generated and analyzed during the current study are not publicly available due to institutional data governance policies but are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.
No publications or documents are linked to this record.
Ran from May 2025 to primary completion in Jun 2025, 1 month.
Of 29 interventional studies with no phase under Conduct Disorder, half reached primary completion within 28 months of starting (the median), counting those still running; a quarter within 22 and three quarters within 68. This study's 1 month is below that.
How these figures are worked out, and which studies are left out of them.
From the registry record's own update history. This site started tracking changes on Sep 25, 2026; for anything earlier, see the record history on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
This study is completed, as verified in Nov 2026. You cannot join it, but the record below documents what was studied.
Get an email when the registry record changes — status, dates, results — or when someone posts here.
Sign in to followQuestions and observations about this study, from anyone following it. Not medical advice, and not a channel to the study team — their contact details are on the registry record.
Sign in to join the discussion. Reading takes no account; posting does. You choose a display name, and a pseudonym is the default.
Nothing here yet. If you are running this trial, taking part in it, or weighing whether to, this is the place to say so.
Islamic Azad University, Sanandaj