Assessment of Prospective Memory using fNIRS in Immersive Virtual Reality Environment

Dong, Dong; Wong, Lawrence K. F.; Luo, Zhiwei

doi:10.4236/jbbs.2017.76018

Cited by 9 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 20 publications

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“…On the other hand, functional nearinfrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) offers a recording of cortical activity in a natural mobility setting with higher spatial resolution than EEG, less susceptibility to motion artifacts and electrical noises, portability, and lightweight characteristic. These advantages substantiate the great potential for the combination of VR-HMD and fNIRS, which has been recently demonstrated in a bisection task (Seraglia et al, 2011), the assessment of prospective memory (Dong et al, 2017;Dong et al, 2018), the processing of racial stereotypes (Kim et al, 2019), performance monitoring during training (Hudak et al, 2017), and a neurofeedback system to support attention (Aksoy et al, 2019). However, the feasibility and ecological validity of using fNIRS to measure fear response during virtual fear exposure is still unexplored.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 71%

Detecting Fear of Heights Response to a Virtual Reality Environment Using Functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy

With

Thammasan

Poel

2022

Front. Comput. Sci.

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To enable virtual reality exposure therapy (VRET) that treats anxiety disorders by gradually exposing the patient to fear using virtual reality (VR), it is important to monitor the patient's fear levels during the exposure. Despite the evidence of a fear circuit in the brain as reflected by functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS), the measurement of fear response in highly immersive VR using fNIRS is limited, especially in combination with a head-mounted display (HMD). In particular, it is unclear to what extent fNIRS can differentiate users with and without anxiety disorders and detect fear response in a highly ecological setting using an HMD. In this study, we investigated fNIRS signals captured from participants with and without a fear of height response. To examine the extent to which fNIRS signals of both groups differ, we conducted an experiment during which participants with moderate fear of heights and participants without it were exposed to VR scenarios involving heights and no heights. The between-group statistical analysis shows that the fNIRS data of the control group and the experimental group are significantly different only in the channel located close to right frontotemporal lobe, where the grand average oxygenated hemoglobin Δ[HbO] contrast signal of the experimental group exceeds that of the control group. The within-group statistical analysis shows significant differences between the grand average Δ[HbO] contrast values during fear responses and those during no-fear responses, where the Δ[HbO] contrast values of the fear responses were significantly higher than those of the no-fear responses in the channels located towards the frontal part of the prefrontal cortex. Also, the channel located close to frontocentral lobe was found to show significant difference for the grand average deoxygenated hemoglobin contrast signals. Support vector machine-based classifier could detect fear responses at an accuracy up to 70% and 74% in subject-dependent and subject-independent classifications, respectively. The results demonstrate that cortical hemodynamic responses of a control group and an experimental group are different to a considerable extent, exhibiting the feasibility and ecological validity of the combination of VR-HMD and fNIRS to elicit and detect fear responses. This research thus paves a way toward the a brain-computer interface to effectively manipulate and control VRET.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 71%

Detecting Fear of Heights Response to a Virtual Reality Environment Using Functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy

With

Thammasan

Poel

2022

Front. Comput. Sci.

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“…Together, the studies by Pinti et al ( 2015 ) and Dong et al ( 2017 , 2019 ) support the feasibility of using fNIRS to investigate brain activities related to PM performance across both task types. However, a limitation of these studies are that they included small sample sizes ( N < 11), and it is unclear what laboratory-based paradigms are compatible with the fNIRS methodology.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 73%

“…Subsequently, Dong et al ( 2017 ) assessed PM using fNIRS in an immersive virtual reality (VR) environment in 11 healthy young participants ( M age = 25.4 years, SD = 25.4). The ongoing task and PM tasks were performed in a shopping street with 12 shops, two special action points, and an exit.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Understanding the Neural Basis of Prospective Memory Using Functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy

Koo

Neumann

Ownsworth

et al. 2022

Front. Hum. Neurosci.

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Prospective memory (PM) is the ability to perform a planned action at an intended future time. This study examined the neural correlates of PM using functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS). This study employed a within-participants design. A laboratory PM task was adapted for use with fNIRS to investigate regions of interest and levels of brain activation during task performance in 32 participants (63% female, Mage = 21.31 years, SDage = 4.62 years). Participants first completed a working memory (WM) task (N-back ongoing task) followed by a WM plus PM task while neural activity was measured using fNIRS. Behavioral results revealed an interference effect for reaction time on the WM task, whereby participants were significantly slower to respond in the WM plus PM task compared to the WM task. Ongoing task accuracies did not differ between the two conditions. fNIRS results revealed a higher level of neural activity in the fronto-polar prefrontal cortex and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex in the WM plus PM task compared to the WM Condition. These findings highlight that fNIRS is a suitable tool for studying and understanding the neural basis of PM.

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“…Neurophysiological changes associated with VR neurorehabilitation can be measured using non-invasive and portable neuroimaging techniques, including fNIRS and/or EEG, equipped with a neuroergonomic and wireless approach, to measure cerebral blood flow in real-time during VR activity. Recently a study by Dong et al ( 2017 ) investigated the function of the prefrontal cortex during a PM activity in an immersive VR environment via Oculus Rift and an OEG-16 multi-channel fNIRS system that allowed solving the problems often present for EEG such as the difficulty of movement for the application of electrodes. By using a virtual shopping experience, this study provided early confirmation of Brodmann area activation in a PM activity in VR but further studies are still needed to evaluate if and which other areas could potentially be involved during memory tasks in VE.…”

Section: Vr For Prospective Memory In Agingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Being in the Past and Perform the Future in a Virtual World: VR Applications to Assess and Enhance Episodic and Prospective Memory in Normal and Pathological Aging

Rizzo

Gambino

Sardo

et al. 2020

Front. Hum. Neurosci.

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The process of aging commonly features a gradual deterioration in cognitive performance and, in particular, the decline of memory. Despite the increased longevity of the world's population, the prevalence of neurodegenerative conditions, such as dementia, continues to be a major burden on public health, and consequently, the latest research has been focused on memory and aging. Currently, the failure of episodic and Prospective memory (PM) is one of the main complaints in the elderly, considered among the early symptoms of dementia. It is therefore increasingly important to define more clearly the boundaries between normal and pathological aging. Recently, researchers have begun to build and apply Virtual Environments (VE) to the explicit purpose of better understanding the performance of episodic and PM in complex and realistic contexts, with the perspective of further developing effective training procedures that depend on reliable cognitive assessment methods. Virtual technology offers higher levels of realism than "pen and paper" testing and at the same time more experimental control than naturalistic settings. In this mini-review article, we examine the outcomes of recently available studies on virtual reality technology applications developed for the assessment and improvement of episodic and/or PM. To consider the latest technology, we selected 29 articles that have been published in the last 10 years. These documents show that VR-based technologies can provide a valid basis for screening and treatment and, through increased sensory stimulation and enriched environments reproducing the scenarios of everyday life, could represent effective stimulating experiences even in pathological aging.

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Assessment of Prospective Memory using fNIRS in Immersive Virtual Reality Environment

Cited by 9 publications

References 20 publications

Detecting Fear of Heights Response to a Virtual Reality Environment Using Functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy

Detecting Fear of Heights Response to a Virtual Reality Environment Using Functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy

Understanding the Neural Basis of Prospective Memory Using Functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy

Being in the Past and Perform the Future in a Virtual World: VR Applications to Assess and Enhance Episodic and Prospective Memory in Normal and Pathological Aging

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