In order to combat anxiety, researchers have developed a horror game via a VR headset for its viscerally immersive side.
More specifically, members of the University of Cambridge have developed a virtual reality game to learn a breathing technique to calm down… by putting the patient in front of a terrifying hungry monster.
The wages of fear
To carry out their experiment, the researchers received the assistance of a well-known development studio: Ninja Theory (Hellblade). The ambition of the project was to help overcome everyday anxiety problems.
” We see anxiety as something that a large majority of people experience, as opposed to specific anxiety disorders. Thus, we are trying to learn emotion regulation techniques that could be beneficial for most people. says Lucie Daniel-Watanabe, Project Director.
While breathing techniques are clearly not new, their flaw would be that they are used in situations where the person is not prone to anxiety. Instead, he is asked to simply imagine being in such a scenario. This is where virtual reality comes in, in order to put an anxious person directly in front of his demons, in order to apply such techniques in a much more concrete way.
” You are on a boat at sunset, when suddenly… »
To put the patient in condition, he is placed on a chair, with an oximeter on his finger, before putting on the helmet and being launched into the game. This starts slowly in order to gradually immerse the user. The decor is set with a boat in the middle of a lake, at sunset in a soothing atmosphere, with a voice telling it to breathe peacefully.
This first step aims to put the patient in confidence and gently lower his heart rate. Then comes the second phase, in an oppressive hovel and almost total darkness. The person in the grip of anxiety will thus begin to panic and must apply the breathing techniques taught in the first part of the game.
Then comes the highlight of the show: a gaunt, blind monster advances screaming at the player, guided by the sound of its heartbeat. To survive in this virtual reality, the patient must imperatively apply the breathing techniques again, in order to slow down his heart rate, or be virtually devoured.
The immersive side of virtual reality thus comes to apply these techniques aimed at combating anxiety, even allowing the user to put into perspective what makes him anxious on a daily basis. Arriving late for work may not be as horrible as the idea, even virtual, of being devoured by a creature stalking your throbbing dancing jig.
Source : The Guardian
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