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3.7. The Implications of VR 39
3.7 The Implications of VR
Weiss [15] tells us that whilst there has been considerable speculation and
enthusiasm among possible users of VR technology regarding its potential,
much of it is still blue sky thinking rather than actual applications. So, as we
have seen, VR has considerable potential for many applications, but it may
not be appropriate or desirable in some cases. There are a number of reasons
for this. Primarily, VR is currently still very expensive as a development tool
and it may not be necessary. For designers, CAD (computer-aided design)
may deliver everything a designer needs without the complications of VR.
In addition, limited research has been done to prove that there is effective
transfer of skills developed in the virtual environment to the real world. It is
this issue that we would like to discuss in more detail.
Critical to using any VR simulator for training is being able to assess
how the skills leant in the virtual environment will be transferred to the real
world. Rose tells us that within the VR training literature, there is a wealth of
anecdotal evidence that transfer does occur. However, Rose also insists that
there have been relatively few attempts to investigate empirically the virtual to
real world transfer process with regards to what sort of training shows transfer,
in what conditions, to what extent, and how robust that transfer is [10].
Take for example the case where VR is used to desensitize people to fears
and phobias. The Virtual Reality Medical Center in California currently uses
VR exposure therapy in combination with physiological monitoring and feed-
back to treat panic and anxiety disorders. Social phobia is the most common
form of anxiety disorder, and the single greatest fear that seems to exist world-
wide is that of public speaking. We can overcome these fears by practicing
public speaking, and by utilizing a number of calming and breathing tech-
niques. VR is used in many instances to provide simulations for practicing
public speaking, and in essence the user becomes less sensitiv e to his fear or
phobia. This lessening of anxiety can be an important asset in enabling people
to maintain their cool under duress, but it may also lead to a loss of respect
for a real-life danger, particularly where the hazard is experienced in a game
format [15]. So if this suggests that practicing or training for certain situa-
tions invariably leaves us feeling less anxious about the real event then let’s
look at the bigger picture. Some researchers have been trying to determine
the effectiveness of transferring the idea of risk through VR [6]. For example,
Mitchell [6] believes that if the simulation is not entirely credible then the
user departs from her VR experience with a lower perception of the hazards
involved. This can be detrimental to the soldier training in a war game simu-
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40 3. Applications and Implications of VR
lation, the surgeon practicing her surgery skills and so on. That is, they have
become desensitized to the real-world dangers.
So perhaps what we can say here is that VR is useful for some applications
but not for all. For example, Stanney suggests that we need to determine the
tasks that are most suitable for users to perform in VR. Of course, the impli-
cation here is that not all tasks are suitable for VR. Indeed, Stanney [13] has
suggested that an understanding of the human factor issues can provide a sys-
tematic basis by which to direct future VR resear ch. Because VR is all about
trying to trick the human user into believing he is in a different environment,
the best and indeed only real way to assess the efficiency of VR is to determine
how much of an impact VR has on the user. Once w e can determine this, we
can improve the VR experience.
They suggested the following key human factors which determine the
effectiveness of VR.
• Will the user get sick or be adversely affected by VR exposure?
• Which tasks are most suitable for users to perform in VR?
• Which user characteristics will influence VR performance?
• Will there be negative social impact resulting from the user’s misuse of
the technology?
• How should VR technology be improved to better meet the user’s
needs?
• How much sensory feedback from the system can the user process?
• Will the user perceive system limitations (e.g., flicker, time lags etc.)?
• What type of design metaphors will enhance the user’s per formance in
VR?
The other interesting point that Stanney makes is to question whether there
will be a negative social impact resulting from the user’s misuse of the tech-
nology. What can this mean? Let’s reflect for one moment on the greatest
communications invention of the past fe w decades—the Internet. Can we
say that this technology has had a negative impact upon society? Without
doubt, the answer can only be yes. Think about credit-card fraud, spam, mis-
use of chat rooms etc. Likewise, can we predict the kind of effect VR will
have on society? It’s still a bit early to guess.
However, Whitby [16] quite succinctly outlines some of the ethical issues
with the use of new technologies and in particular VR. He indicates that
doubts have been v oiced about the implications of the sort of freedom that
can be provided by VR. In particular, there are worries about users having the
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3.7. The Implications of VR 41
freedom to commit rape and murder within VR. Obviously, this is an ethical
rather than technical issue. It is technically possible to construct VR in such
a way that almost every possibility of the user’s imagination can be fulfilled.
It is also possible for designers to place arbitrary limits on what is possible
within a particular VR. That is, the VR system can be designed and built in
such a way to prevent people from carrying out immoral acts. Whitby goes
on to argue that there are four very real reasons as to why restrictions should
be placed in VR. These are [16]:
1. People acting out scenarios in VR might then do it for real. This may not
be as crazy as first seems. We all know that crime is on the rise in the
western world, and for some time people have been linking this rise to
the rise in crime shown on popular TV.
2. Some things are not acceptable even in private. This point indicates that
if a person commits a morally unacceptable act in VR, because it
doesn’t affect anyone, can it really be seen as unethical? Of course,
the answer is yes, because every person h as an ethical duty to them-
selves.
3. People may end up preferring the virtual world to the real. Again we n eed
only remember the world of the Internet and cyber dating to know that
this argument could well have substance.
4. The designers of VR can signal social approval or disapproval. Essentially,
designers of VR have the ability to reward ethical behavior and prevent
unethical behavior. For example, look at some computer games on the
market. They require their users to commit murder in order to advance
to the next level of the game. Here they are obviously being rewarded
for unethical behavior. And again, some psychologists would question
the impact this has on our youth.
Well, all this looks a bit depressing for VR! We won’t delve any deeper into
the ethical issues of the technology—we just wanted you to know that they
do exist.
But on to some more bad news for VR. Let’s not forget that the use
of VR technology may also have some health concerns for the individuals
involved. For example, performing tasks in a virtual environment may require
increased concentration compared to performing similar tasks in the natural
world [3]. This may affect heart rate and blood pressure, for example, which
may adversely affect some people and not others. And it is also known that
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42 3. Applications and Implications of VR
certain values of lag time
1
in a visual display can cause disorientation, which
is now termed vision-induced motion sickness (VIMS). In fact, most people
cannot use VR systems for more than 15 minutes without feeling the effects
of VIMS. But again, as graphic processing units become more powerful, lag
time reduces, and as such VIMS will become a less problematic phenomena
of using VR.
There you have it! The negative effects of VR encapsulated in a few
paragraphs. Of course, we should mention that if the technology is used
in a responsible manner then the technology really does have the means to
improve people’s lifestyles and work styles. Just think of the automobile. So
it’s not all bad!
3.8 Summary
As you have seen, there is an enormous potential for VR technology to im-
pact upon numerous industries, educational establishments and various ap-
plications. Examples include the use of VR in desensitization training with
patients with phobia, in treating children with autism, in training people
with learning difficulties and for rehabilitation of patients. It is impossible to
cover all the potential applications for VR and we have not tried. What we
have done is try to give you a broad sample of applications currently being
researched and developed, to give you an idea of the breadth and flexibility
of VR.
However, it is also worth noting that most potential applications for VR
are still very much in the development stage. A wide and varied range of tests
and development scenarios must be dreamt up and implemented to verify
whether VR is useful for the application, and if so to what extent and whether
it justifies the cost. And then of course we need to enter into the arena of
human effects and physiological impact. This requires a whole new set of
skills than those possessed by the engineer or computer scientist who can
design and build the VR scenarios. Thus w e enter into the realms of cross-
disciplinary work, and this adds a whole new set of complications to the
decision of whether to use VR or not.
Added to all that, we need not forgot that the equipment required for
our VR scenarios is still not as highly developed as we would like it to be.
And of course VR is just like any other technology when it comes to market-
1
Lagtimeinthiscontextreferstothetimeittakesforthevisualdisplaytobeupdatedin
order to reflect the movement of the V R user.
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Bibliography 43
place success. It needs to be cost effective, efficient, robust, do what it is
intended to do, be user friendly and have no nasty side effects caused by it
usage. It might be a few more years before we can satisfy this list of demands
for all the potential applications, but certainly it is a technology in its growth
phase, and one that has captured the imagination of the public and scientists
alike.
So what conclusion can we make about VR? We suggest you make your
own! But by reading the rest of the book, you will be able to learn how to do
things in VR. You can even try them out for yourselves. By doing all this, you
should be able to make a better informed judgment about the future of VR
and hopefully how you too can make a contribution.
Bibliography
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[2] B. Delaney. “Visualization in Urban Planning: They Didn’t Build LA in a Day”.
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[3] R. C. Eberhart and P. N. Kzakevich. “Determining Physiological Effects of
Using VR Equipment”. In Proceedings of the Conference on Virtual Reality and
Persons with Disabilities, pp. 47–49. Nor thridge, CA: Center on Disabilities,
1993.
[4] D. Fallman, A. Backman and K. Holmund. “VR in Education: An Introduc-
tion to M ultisensory Constructivist Learning Environments”. In Proceedings
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dfallman/resources/Fallman VRIE.rtf), 1999.
[5] M. Macedonia. “Entertainment Technology and Virtual Environments for
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(http://www.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/ffp0107s.pdf). Cambridge, MA: Fo-
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[6] J. T. Mitchell. “Can Hazard Risk be Communicated through a Virtual Experi-
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[7] S. Pieper et al. “Surgical Simulation: From Computer-Aided Design to
Computer-Aided Surgery”. In Proceedings of Medicine Meets Virtual Reality.
Amsterdam: IOS Press, 1992.
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