Allie Lerman

Independent Research Pd.2

October 21, 2016
Seeing is Believing: Using Virtual Reality to Adapt to Change

Research Question and Hypothesis:

How can virtual reality technology be applied to help people function more effectively in
the world around them?
Virtual reality will have a positive effect as a psychological tool used to aid people
undergoing a transformative change.

Background and History:

Virtual reality (VR) has recently become a popular technological experience, but it is far
from new. The earliest form of VR took place in panoramic paintings (Virtual Reality Society,
2016). While these two mediums seem unrelated, they are both centered around the same
concept: creating an immersive experience that makes users or viewers feel a part of the world
they are seeing around them. The first major development in actual VR technology came in 1838
with the creation of stereoscopic photos and viewers. This occurred because a man named
Charles Wheatstone discovered that each of a persons eyes see two different two-dimensional
images and the brain processes these separate images by combining them to create one
three-dimensional image (2016). This meant that stereoscopic images could give users a sense of
presence in an environment. From this revelation, VR became a real possibility, paving the way
for the creation of the first flight simulators and head mounted displays (HMDs). In 1965, Ivan
Sutherland, a major contributor to VR, described the ideal VR system (Mazuryk & Gervautz,

1996). His ideas would create the blueprint for the VR interfaces of today. Since then,VR has
made its way into TV, movies, and books, causing more people to begin to take an interest in it.
With the rapid technological advancements of the 21st Century, VR has become an up-incoming,
mainstream idea.
In todays society, VR is widely accepted as an immersive experience where users can
interact with objects and other users in a controlled, virtual environment. To accomplish this, VR
technologies have four key elements: virtual worlds, immersion, sensory feedback, and
interactivity (Sherman & Craig, 2003). For a VR to exist, there must be a virtual world for the
user to explore. This is the content of a VR experience; the environment that a user is surrounded
by. VR technology also requires complete mental and physical immersion. Users must feel that
they are involved and present in the virtual world that they are experiencing. To feel this
involvement, sensory feedback is provided by the VR system. Based on a participants physical
position, the system will provide multi-sensory feedback, allowing the participant to feel like
they are actually interacting with the environment they are seeing. Interactivity is an important
quality for VR systems because it makes them feel authentic. When these four elements are
combined, the VR experiences known by members of society today are created.

Problem Statement and Rationale:

VR has become a popular concept explored by many scientists and engineers, however,
many people are unsure of where and how this type of technology can be applied. Psychology is
a current field that seeks to understand the minds of people in order to help them live the best
lives possible. Many treatments to psychological disorders are standardized, meaning each

disorder has only one common treatment. VR systems are overlooked as a treatment option for
people suffering from psychological disorders. Beyond this,VR has the ability to be a powerful
tool used to alter social biases. The world is desperate for a new approach to combat racism,
sexism, and religious persecution. In order for VR reach its full potential, it is important for
professionals in these fields to realize that the applications of VR go far beyond gaming. These
professionals need to be given proof of this concept and specific instructions for how to use this
knowledge in the field of psychology in order for this technology to benefit as many people as
possible.

Basis of Hypothesis:
The hypothesis focuses on using VR to adapt to change because VR creates a virtual
environment that allows a user to practice a certain situation. Once users learn how to react
appropriately to those situations, they will handle them better in the real world. Thus far, the
research has shown that VR can be used to handle three major changes in how a person views a
part of the world. VR can be used to treat veterans with combat-related Post Traumatic Stress
Disorder (change how these people view a traumatic situation), to alter peoples social biases
(change how these people view a different group of people), and to help people with autism
participate in social situations (change how these people interact with others). However, the
effectiveness of these treatments as demonstrated by statistics still needs to be investigated by the
researcher in order to prove the hypothesis.

Operational Definitions:
Virtual reality - An immersive form of technology that allows users to interact in virtual
environments and provides multi-sensory feedback to users based on those interactions

Transformative change - An alteration in how someone views the world or a part of it

Research Design:
Qualitative data will be collected on this topic through a systematic review of literature
and interviews. Research will focus on how VR can be used to alter social biases. A
meta-analysis will take place of already existing studies on this topic. In addition, experts in the
field of virtual reality as well as scientists who have conducted the studies being analyzed by the
researcher will be interviewed. Through these forms of data collection, the researcher will
determine if virtual reality is effective in reducing negative social bias that one group of people
has towards another group of people.

References:
Mazuryk, T., & Gervautz, M. (1996). Virtual reality: History, applications, technology, and
future. Retrieved from Vienna University of Technology website:
https://www.cg.tuwien.ac.at/research/publications/1996/mazuryk-1996-VRH/TR-186-2-96-0
6Paper.pdf
Sherman, W. R., & Craig, A. B. (2003). Introduction to virtual reality. In
Understanding virtual reality: Interface, application, and design (pp.
5-13). Retrieved from
https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=b3OJpAMQikAC&oi=fnd&pg=PP1&dq=un
derstanding+virtual+reality:+Interface,+Application,+and+Design&ots=3DLQhqDMRm&si
g=qs1Ux-n5okCNPr5xSQxrcmulKiw#v=onepage&q=understanding%20virtual%20reality%
3A%20Interface%2C%20Application%2C%20and%20Design&f=false
Virtual Reality Society. (2016). History of virtual reality. Retrieved from
http://www.vrs.org.uk/virtual-reality/history.html