Search

In an immersive virtual environment, it was investigated how the perception of body kinetics contributes to social distance behavior when the facial expression and other physical properties of a social interaction partner cannot be perceived. Based on point light displays, both the subject and the social interaction partner were depicted as stick figures, both moving simultaneously in the same space. In addition, the effects of relevant psychological factors of the perceiver on social distance behavior were examined. The results were consistent with those from studies with facial expressions or realistic full-body interactants. A greater distance was maintained from characters with emotionally negative expressions of body kinetics. Stationary objects stimuli, which were also included in the study, were mostly passed closer than neutral agents. However, the results are not entirely clear and require further investigation. Depressive symptom burden and factors mainly related to anxiety and avoidance showed effects on social distance in an IVE. The CID, a test often used to assess the interpersonal distance at which a person is comfortable, correlated with that overt behavior. In summary, the results of the study provide experimental evidence that the perception of body kinetics has a similarly significant influence on the regulation of social distance as, for example, facial affect. Implementing this study in real life would be incredibly complex, if not impossible. It is interesting to see that the comparatively simple method used in this study to create and operate an immersive virtual environment turned out to be suitable for studying at least simple types of social behavior based on body movements., Author(s): Gebhard Sammer [sup.1] [sup.2] , Christoph Ruprecht [sup.1] Author Affiliations: (1) grid.8664.c, 0000 0001 2165 8627, CognitiveNeuroScience at the Centre for Psychiatry, Justus Liebig University (JLU) Giessen, , Klinikstraße [...]

The purpose of the study was to examine how Virtual Reality (VR) sport game users' sensation seeking (high/low), sense of presence (high/low), and perceived risk of sport (high/low) affect stress reduction and intention to participate in sport activities while controlling for sport involvement. Eighty-eight college students participated in data collection and data was analyzed using a three-way multivariate analysis of covariance. The results of the study revealed that sensation seeking produced a significant multivariate effect on stress reduction and intention to participate in sport activities. Sense of presence and perceived risk of sport, however, produced no such significant multivariate effect. In the following analysis of variance, there were univariate effects of sense of presence and sensation seeking on stress reduction and participation intention, respectively. This study provides sport marketers with practical information for developing strategies to facilitate participation in sport activities through VR sport games. This study also offers an opportunity for coaches and administrators in sport organizations to develop a training or an education program. Finally, the results of the study can be utilized as a therapeutic modality to safely expose people who have phobias or aversions to speed or heights. Keywords: virtual reality; sensation seeking; sense of presence; perceived risk of sport; participation intention; stress reduction, The COVID-19 policies restricting indoor and outdoor physical activities have caused people to experience unprecedented levels of emotional stress (Liu, 2020). As a means of stress management through at-home physical [...]

This action research study has two aims: (i) to develop a wearable virtual reality language-learning platform for English for specific purposes and (ii) to examine student learning effectiveness and the relationship between self-efficacy and behavioral intention. The participants are 131 university students in Taiwan. A model of wearable virtual reality language-learning based on structural equation modeling is built. A path analysis indicates that self-efficacy directly influences students' perceptions of ease of use of the wearable virtual reality technology and indirectly influences perceived usefulness, attitude, and behavioral intention. Student self-efficacy is slightly above the moderate level. Gender and English proficiency have an effect on student self-efficacy and behavioral intention, whereas students' online and virtual reality learning experiences have no significant effect on these variables. This new environment is shown to facilitate student learning: the pretest and posttest results indicate improvements in lexical and semantic knowledge, reading comprehension, and syntax. The study implies that since self-efficacy is a crucial determinant in student technology use, educators should enhance student self-efficacy in order to encourage them to try innovative technology., Author(s): Chun-Chia Hsu [sup.1] , Yu-Li Chen [sup.2] , Chih-Yung Lin [sup.1] , Wei-chih Lien [sup.2] Author Affiliations: (1) grid.445089.4, 0000 0004 0639 3159, Department of Multimedia and Game Science, [...]

Recently, it has been claimed that real-life, autobiographical events are processed differently compared to conventional laboratory events. Virtual reality might bridge the gap between real life and laboratory experiences and increase the ecological validity of psychological research. There is broad consensus that self-referential processing is essential for the formation of autobiographical memory. However, it is unclear whether autobiographical experiences can be created with commonly used paradigms, or if self-referentiality is unique to (virtual) reality. We thus set up an experiment in which participants explored a virtual Viking Village either in virtual reality or as a conventional first-person experience on a screen. As hypothesized, virtual reality experiences are vividly retrieved via recollection-based mnemonic processes, which are typical for autobiographical memory. In comparison, conventional screen experiences rather leave a feeling of familiarity. The encoding mechanism in virtual reality might closely resemble real-life mnemonic processing, making VR an ideal tool to study real-life cognition under controlled laboratory conditions., Author(s): Joanna Kisker [sup.1] , Thomas Gruber [sup.1] , Benjamin Schöne [sup.1] Author Affiliations: (1) grid.10854.38, 0000 0001 0672 4366, Institute of Psychology, Osnabrück University, , Seminarstraße 20, 49074, Osnabrück, [...]

Virtual reality (VR) places individuals within a simulated experience using an array of visual, auditory, and tactile interfaces. Research suggests VR, which facilitates the rehearsal of actual job duties and performance assessment during training, may improve professional development across a range of disciplines. Although studies incorporating technology into professional development for educators are increasingly common, few have examined the potential for VR as a training tool. Direct observation represents a fundamental skill for professionals involved in behavior change. The present study evaluated the effectiveness of an automated simulation in teaching graduate and undergraduate students (N = 31) to collect partial-interval recording data pertaining to inappropriate behavior. Participants were randomly assigned to either a control condition or intervention condition consisting of a brief simulated observation of a student exhibiting problem behavior. Results suggest participants who used VR were more confident in their ability to collect data; however, evidence for improved outcomes related to data collection was not identified. These mixed findings provide tentative support for further research in this area., Author(s): Seth A. King [sup.1], Chaidamoyo Dzenga [sup.2], Taneal Burch [sup.2], Krystal Kennedy [sup.2] Author Affiliations: (1) grid.214572.7, 0000 0004 1936 8294, Department of Teaching and Learning, University of Iowa, [...]

Author(s): Benjamin Schöne [sup.1] , Marlene Wessels [sup.1] , Thomas Gruber [sup.1] Author Affiliations: (Aff1) 0000 0001 0672 4366, grid.10854.38, Institute of Psychology, Osnabrück University, , Seminarstraße 20, 49074, Osnabrück, [...], VR-based paradigms could substantially increase the ecological validity of various psychological research topics as VR allows for submerging into real-life experiences under controlled laboratory conditions. In particular, in the field of mnemonic research, concerns have been raised that "laboratory memory" differs significantly from "real-life" autobiographical memory. Our study aimed to assess the immersive qualities of VR not only upon application but -more importantly- during the retrieval of the virtual experiences subsequent to a VR session. We presented participants with either a 360° VR or a 2D video of a motorcycle ride followed by an unannounced recognition memory task 48 h later. Increased retrieval success and delayed reaction times in the VR group indicate that immersive VR experiences become part of an extensive autobiographical associative network, whereas the conventional video experience remains an isolated episodic event.

Hari and Jousmaki (1996) found that motor activity is initiated more efficiently in response to stimuli located on the responding limb as opposed to near the limb. Our research investigated the basis for this difference in spatial coding. We conducted 8 experiments using virtual reality to manipulate the visual feedback resulting from limb movement (spatial location, limb appearance, and nature of response consequences). Our findings replicated the Hari and Jousmaki (1996) effect to reveal that visual appearance and correspondence between the visual and felt position of the limbs was inconsequential. However, it was crucial that visual feedback was a predictable consequence of movement. When this predictability was present, the distinction between the space on the limb (predictable surface) and off the limb (rest of the environment) emerged. We suggest that there may be a functional distinction in coding of space that is and is not predictably controlled by the individual. Keywords: body space, body schema, action

This report examined whether Virtual Reality Exposure Therapy (VRET) could be used in the treatment of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms in the aftermath of a serious motor vehicle accident. Six individuals reporting either full or severe subsyndromal PTSD completed 10 sessions of VRET, which was conducted using software designed to create real-time driving scenarios. Results indicated significant reductions in posttrauma symptoms involving reexperiencing, avoidance, and emotional numbing, with effect sizes ranging from d=.79 to d=1.49. Indices of clinically significant and reliable change suggested that the magnitude of these changes was meaningful. Additionally, high levels of perceived reality ('presence') within the virtual driving situation were reported, and patients reported satisfaction with treatment. Results are discussed in light of the possibility for VRET to be useful in guiding exposure in the treatment of PTSD following road accidents.

The individual and combined effects of posthypnotic suggestion (PHS) and virtual reality distraction (VRD) on experimentally induced thermal pain were examined using a 2 x 2, between-groups design. After receiving baseline thermal pain, each participant received hypnosis or no hypnosis, followed, by VRD or no VRD during another pain stimulus. Consistent with the hypothesis that hypnosis and VRD work via different mechanisms, results show that posthypnotic analgesia was moderated by hypnotizability but VRD analgesia was not. The impact of PHSs for analgesia was specific to high hypnotizables, whereas VRD was effective independent of hypnotizability. Results also show a nonsignificant but predicted pattern for high hypnotizables: Audio hypnosis combined with VRD reduced worst pain 22% more and pain unpleasantness 25% more than did VRD alone. Theoretical and clinical implications are discussed. Keywords: virtual reality, hypnosis, analgesia, distraction, pain control

Digital immersive virtual environment technology (IVET) enables behavioral scientists to conduct ecologically realistic experiments with near-perfect experimental control. The authors employed IVET to study the interpersonal distance maintained between participants and virtual humans. In Study 1, participants traversed a three-dimensional virtual room in which a virtual human stood. In Study 2, a virtual human approached participants. In both studies, participant gender, virtual human gender, virtual human gaze behavior, and whether virtual humans were allegedly controlled by humans (i.e., avatars) or computers (i.e., agents) were varied. Results indicated that participants maintained greater distance from virtual humans when approaching their fronts compared to their backs. In addition, participants gave more personal space to virtual agents who engaged them in mutual gaze. Moreover, when virtual humans invaded their personal space, participants moved farthest from virtual human agents. The advantages and disadvantages of IVET for the study of human behavior are discussed. Keywords: human representation; proxemics; nonverbal behavior; computer-mediated communication; virtual reality

Forty-five participants who refused to fly during a screening test and who also met Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders criteria for specific phobia, agoraphobia, or panic disorder with agoraphobia were randomly assigned to 5 sessions of either virtual reality exposure (VRE) or attention-placebo group treatment (GT). At posttreatment, 65% of VRE participants and 57% of GT participants flew during a test flight. Both groups showed significant improvement following treatment on standardized self-report measures of flight anxiety, with a better outcome for the VRE group on 4 of 5 of these measures. At 6-month follow-up, however, most group differences had disappeared; VRE resulted in a better outcome on only 1 of 5 standardized flight anxiety measures.

Current measures to reduce falls for people in the construction injury focus on fall protection procedures. These have been proved to be impractical and further research should attempt to develop improved workers' balance control and safety performance through virtual reality techniques.

The aim of this study was to determine the effectiveness of virtual reality (VR) exposure in the treatment of claustrophobic fear. We evaluated the intervention following a controlled, multiple-baseline design across 4 participants with claustrophobic fear who sought psychological help in our anxiety disorders clinic. The treatment consisted of 8 individual VR graded exposure sessions. Data were obtained at pretreatment, posttreatment, and 3-month follow-up on several clinical measures: Behavioral Avoidance Test, Self-Efficacy Toward Closed Spaces, Problem-Related Impairment Questionnaire, Beck Depression Inventory (Beck, 1978), and Anxiety Sensitivity Index (Peterson & Reiss, 1992). Results support the effectiveness of the VR procedure for the treatment of claustrophobic fear. An important change appeared in all measures after treatment completion. It can be concluded that VR exposure was effective in reducing fear and avoidance in closed spaces and in increasing self-efficacy in claustrophobic situations. Moreover, changes were maintained at 3-month follow-up.

In virtual space, humans learn to find an invisible target that remains in a given location relative to distal cues, based on results of three experiments. One experiment showed that people quickly learned to find an invisible target in a computer-generated virtual space. They searched the appropriate place with intensity when the target was removed in probe trial. Two other experiments showed spatial learning and memory implications exist.

Sigmund Freud claimed that human narcissism was battered severely by the ideas of Copernicus, Charles Darwin and his own theory of psychoanalysis. The Internet, the use of virtual reality software such as multiuser dungeons and the increasing creation of alternate online personalities by computer users constitute a fourth blow against narcissism, and not necessarily a positive one. Some Internet users prefer their seductive, simulated lives online to their real world existences. Absorption into the Internet's virtual community sometimes blurs the line between role-playing and delusion.

Becoming Machine In consequence of the many flights of rays, etc., there had appeared in my skull a deep cleft or rent along the middle, which probably was not visible [...]

Previous research demonstrated social influence resulting from mimicry (the chameleon effect); a confederate who mimicked participants was more highly regarded than a confederate who did not, despite the fact that participants did not explicitly notice the mimicry. In the current study, participants interacted with an embodied artificial intelligence agent in immersive virtual reality. The agent either mimicked a participant's head movements at a 4-s delay or utilized prerecorded movements of another participant as it verbally presented an argument. Mimicking agents were more persuasive and received more positive trait ratings than nonmimickers, despite participants' inability to explicitly detect the mimicry. These data are uniquely powerful because they demonstrate the ability to use automatic, indiscriminate mimicking (i.e., a computer algorithm blindly applied to all movements) to gain social influence. Furthermore, this is the first study to demonstrate social influence effects with a nonhuman, nonverbal mimicker.

The article explores the influence of new media on treating phobias based on natural objects such as snakes and spiders. Research involved interviewing members of the United KingdomEs National Phobics Society. Discussion includes whether complete cultural-based control can be asserted over unpredictable natural phenomena.

Research suggests some mood benefits of exercise are enhanced when paired with aerobic exercise. Virtual reality without exercise was found to increase participants' fatigue and tension, while including virtual reality with exercise tended to enhance energy and enjoyment.