Virtual Reality Nature Exposure and Test Anxiety

O'Meara, Alison; Cassarino, Marica; Bolger, Aaron; Setti, Annalisa

doi:10.3390/mti4040075

Cited by 21 publications

(17 citation statements)

References 38 publications

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“…There was a skew toward youth in most studies, with 70.8% of the subjects being under 30 years old and only one study specifically aimed at seniors (mean age: 72.7; Chan et al, 2021b ). Three studies included clinical populations who suffered from mild depression, stress, anxiety ( Jo et al, 2022 ), depressive symptoms ( Meuwese et al, 2021 ), or high exam anxiety ( O’Meara et al, 2020 ).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Another study declared the use of a procedure to schedule random numbers (Meuwese et al, 2021). However, no apparent baseline differences were found between intervention groups except in one study (O'Meara et al, 2020). Thus, most studies that were unclear in randomization methods and the concealment of allocation sequence still received a "some concern" rating in the randomization process domain.…”

Section: Risk Of Biasmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Effects of immersion in a simulated natural environment on stress reduction and emotional arousal: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Ding

Zhao

et al. 2023

Front. Psychol.

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BackgroundAlthough the mental health benefits of exposure to simulated natural environments are well established by researchers from environmental psychology, landscape architecture, and public health, it is unclear whether and to what extent technological immersion affects these benefits.MethodsSystematical literature searches were conducted in May 2022 from six databases. The risk of bias was evaluated using the Cochrane’s Risk of Bias tool 2.0 and the Risk of Bias in Non-randomized Studies of Interventions tool. We performed a random-effects meta-regression to investigate the heterogeneity. The immersion levels of included studies were classified by projection devices and motion capture, and then subgroup analysis was conducted.ResultsTwenty-six publications were included. Exposure to simulated nature was confirmed to be associated with increased positive affect 0.40 [95% confidence interval (CI): 0.22, 0.58], vigor 0.58 (95% CI: 0.30, 0.86), calmness 0.54 (95% CI: 0.17, 0.92) and decreased perceived stress −0.38 (95% CI: −0.71, −0.06), total mood disturbance −0.87 (95% CI: −1.17, −0.57), tension −0.70 (95% CI: −0.99, −0.41), fatigue −0.60 (95% CI: −0.91, −0.28), anxiety −0.72 (95% CI: −1.43, −0.02), depression −0.33 (95% CI: −0.52, −0.14), confusion −0.79 (95% CI: −1.19, −0.40), and anger −0.54 (95% CI: −0.76, −0.31). Gender, health status, study design, mean age, and single exposure duration were not significant when entered in a meta-regression. For positive affect, medium immersion was observed to produce a larger effect than low and high immersion. All included studies had a moderate to high risk of bias.ConclusionAudio-visual exposure to simulated nature contributes to stress relief and emotional arousal. The immersion level explains the heterogeneity of positive affect triggered by simulated nature. Focusing on the technical features will open up new possibilities for combining actual and simulated nature’s mental health benefits.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Risk Of Biasmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of immersion in a simulated natural environment on stress reduction and emotional arousal: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Ding

Zhao

et al. 2023

Front. Psychol.

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“…Generalized anxiety disorder (6/34, 18%) [ 27 , 28 , 39 , 42 , 46 , 49 ] was next, followed by public speaking anxiety (4/34, 12%) [ 14 , 31 , 51 , 56 ]. The rest of the studies aimed at specific clinical conditions such as paruresis [ 40 ], exam anxiety [ 48 ], driving-related [ 38 ] or car passenger anxiety [ 30 ], disruptive behavior in the classroom [ 45 ], or social anxiety in children with autism spectrum disorder [ 33 ].…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…VR music therapy was used in the treatment of social anxiety in adolescents with autism spectrum disorder. Other interventions applied were VR games or exercises [ 15 , 45 , 46 , 49 ], CBT in addition to VR [ 14 , 27 , 38 , 39 ], and 360° VR videos [ 36 , 44 , 48 , 51 ]. Approximately 9% (3/34) of studies used different types of VR interventions, such as visuo-haptic–based multimodal feedback VR system [ 32 ], VR-based neurofeedback therapy [ 42 ], and a VR task-tracking avoidance behavior [ 29 ].…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Virtual Reality for Supporting the Treatment of Depression and Anxiety: Scoping Review

Baghaei¹,

Chitale²,

Hlasnik³

et al. 2021

JMIR Ment Health

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Background Mental health conditions pose a major challenge to health care providers and society at large. The World Health Organization predicts that by 2030, mental health conditions will be the leading cause of disease burden worldwide. The current need for mental health care is overwhelming. In New Zealand, 1 in 6 adults has been diagnosed with common mental disorders, such as depression and anxiety disorders, according to a national survey. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) has been shown to effectively help patients overcome a wide variety of mental health conditions. Virtual reality exposure therapy (VRET) might be one of the most exciting technologies emerging in the clinical setting for the treatment of anxiety and depression. Objective This study aims to investigate the virtual reality (VR) technologies currently being used to help support the treatment of depression and anxiety. We also aim to investigate whether and how CBT is included as part of VRET and look at the VR technologies and interventions that have been used in recent studies on depression and anxiety. Methods We performed a scoping review. To identify significant studies, we decided to use already aggregated sources from the Google Scholar database. Overall, the goal of our search strategy was to limit the number of initial results related to VR in mental health to only a relevant minimum. Results Using our defined keywords, Google Scholar identified >17,300 articles. After applying all the inclusion and exclusion criteria, we identified a total of 369 articles for further processing. After manual evaluation, 34 articles were shortlisted; of the 34 articles, 9 (26%) reported the use of CBT with VR. All of the articles were published between 2017 and 2021. Out of the 9 studies, CBT was conducted within a VR environment in 5 (56%) studies, whereas in the remaining 4 (44%) studies, CBT was used as an addition to VRET. All 9 studies reported the use of CBT either in vivo or in a virtual environment to be effective in supporting the treatment of anxiety or depression. Conclusions Most studies demonstrated the use of VR to be effective for supporting the treatment of anxiety or depression in a range of settings and recommended its potential as a tool for use in a clinical environment. Even though standalone headsets are much easier to work with and more suitable for home use, the shift from tethered VR headsets to standalone headsets in the mental health environment was not observed. All studies that looked at the use of CBT either in vivo or in a virtual environment found it to be effective in supporting the treatment of anxiety or depression.

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“…For instance, the study by Anderson et al [ 58 ] has shown that exposure to 360° videos of nature reduced negative affect in comparison to a control environment. Another study revealed that VR nature exposure improved negative affect in a sample of students who experienced exam anxiety [ 59 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Connecting to Nature through 360° Videos during COVID-19 Confinement: A Pilot Study of a Brief Psychological Intervention

Navarrete

Navarro-Siurana

Herrero

et al. 2022

Journal of Healthcare Engineering

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Psychological interventions have been shown to be beneficial in mitigating stress related to COVID-19 confinement. According to theories of restorative environments, exposure to natural surroundings has positive effects on well-being and stress through its restorative qualities. With 360° video-based Virtual Reality (VR), people can be exposed to nature and so better manage the consequences associated with mobility restrictions during confinement. The main aim of this pilot study was to examine whether a 360° video-based VR intervention composed of five 13-minute sessions (once a day) has positive effects on affect, well-being, and stress. The sample was made up of 10 participants (4 men and 6 women; age : M = 46.5, SD = 11.7) who were confined at home (voluntarily or not) during the COVID-19 pandemic. Participants were instructed to watch a 360° video each day (of a “beach” or “lake” environment) using their smartphone and VR glasses sent to them by mail. Participants responded with several self-reports before and/or after each session (emotions and sense of presence) and before and/or after the intervention (affect, well-being, perceived stress, perceived restorativeness of nature, and the usefulness and acceptability of the intervention). Results showed a tendency to improve positive (e.g., happiness) and negative (e.g., anxiousness) emotions and experience a high sense of presence after each session. Moreover, perceived restorative qualities of the environment and their cognitive and behavioral effects were high. A significant decrease in negative affect was found after the intervention. Usefulness and acceptability were also high. This is the first study to show that an affordable and accessible technology can be used to overcome the negative consequences of confinement and counteract its harmful psychological effects.

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Virtual Reality Nature Exposure and Test Anxiety

Cited by 21 publications

References 38 publications

Effects of immersion in a simulated natural environment on stress reduction and emotional arousal: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Effects of immersion in a simulated natural environment on stress reduction and emotional arousal: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Virtual Reality for Supporting the Treatment of Depression and Anxiety: Scoping Review

Connecting to Nature through 360° Videos during COVID-19 Confinement: A Pilot Study of a Brief Psychological Intervention

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