Age disorientation, liminality and reality: the case of the Alzheimer's patient.
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Aged↗
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Results for “Reality Testing”
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Cognitive intervention for voice hearers.
Cognitive behavioral therapy is an emerging treatment being used to attenuate negative thoughts and emotions tied to the formation, expression, and maintenance of verbal auditory hallucinations. This paper describes the theoretical underpinnings for the intervention and a clinical application of a prototype cognitive nursing intervention for treating faulty thinking and beliefs linked with problematic voice hearing experiences. The paper ends with a review of current evidence and implications concerning the efficacy of cognitive intervention approaches with voice hearers.
Adaptation, Psychological↗
Expectations versus reality, social support, and the well-being of medical students.
This longitudinal study of medical students assessed the relationship between their mental and social well-being, the discrepancy between their expectations and the reality of the learning environment, and social support, after controlling for baseline characteristics that may affect students' perceptions. Finding, at the end of the first year, that the quality of the learning environment was better than expected was positively associated with social well-being but negatively associated with mental well-being. Finding less stress than expected was positively associated with both mental and social well-being. Social support had only a direct positive association with social well-being. There was a suggestion, although it was not statistically significant, of a negative association between social support and mental well-being and a positive interaction between social support and students' perception of the environment's quality. These findings suggest that stressors and mediators of stress may show specificity for health outcomes.
Adaptation, Psychological↗
Memories of uncertain origin: dreamt or real?
The existence of a memory whose origin, real or dreamt, was uncertain was reported by just over half of an undergraduate sample of 358. Each respondent described one such memory if they had one. The memories were typically of mundane events, although 10 respondents described possible crimes. Respondents were often concerned to resolve the origin of these memories. Their plausibility, vividness, and how well the events fitted into one's life were often considered by the respondents, but where resolution occurred it was frequently based on evidence obtained from the physical or social environment. The reported qualities of the event did not correlate with whether the respondent thought it more likely to have been originally a dream or a real event.
Age Factors↗
Flashbulb memories: conceptual and methodological issues.
Although flashbulb memory research is now well established, it is still not clear exactly what researchers are referring to as flashbulbs, and what is the best way to address the phenomenon. There are at least two ways in which the term "flashbulbs" is used, and at least two conceptual approaches that can be used to research them. The first usage corresponds to the bold theoretical conjectures put forward by Brown and Kulik (1977). The second results from empirical classification and intuitively lacks the essence conveyed by the first meaning. The two approaches concentrate on the cognitive and societal aspects, respectively. Although these are not incompatible, they make different assumptions and use different methodologies. We argue that research should be directed towards more unified theorising, and we describe methodologies appropriate for this approach.
Attention↗
A source-monitoring account of auditory verbal hallucinations in patients with schizophrenia.
Auditory verbal hallucinations are a common and distressing symptom experienced by patients with schizophrenia. They can be understood as arising from an impairment in reality monitoring-the process by which internally and externally generated events are distinguished. This impairment might arise through primary abnormalities in the reality-monitoring mechanism or through secondary mechanisms (abnormalities in the perceptual characteristics of internally generated events or in the perception of externally generated events). This article examines evidence for and against an association between abnormalities in reality monitoring and auditory verbal hallucinations in schizophrenia. A comprehensive review of the psychological literature suggests that there is little evidence for an association between auditory verbal hallucinations and secondary mechanisms leading to abnormalities in reality monitoring. There is some evidence suggesting that hallucinators show a primary reality-monitoring abnormality that is most apparent when patients are required to distinguish self from other in real time. To draw firmer conclusions, however, it is imperative that future studies select patient populations precisely, match control groups, and use consistent criteria for defining hallucinators.
Attention↗
Liveliness.
OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study is to explore the significance of the experience of liveliness in psychotherapeutic interactions and its relevance to the practice of psychotherapy. METHOD: Stern's notion of 'vitality affects' and Emde's concept of a 'primary affective core' are employed in developing a concept of liveliness, or an enlivening-deadening axis of experience. A critique of Freud's 'principles of mental functioning' is made in the light of this concept. Clinical examples are provided as illustrations of the relevance of considering the 'sense of liveliness', and its sustainability, in psychotherapy. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: A sense of liveliness relates closely to activity within a system of interpersonal resonance with non-linear characteristics. The experience of, and responses to, vitality affects may be an important basis of a sense of liveliness. Sudden shifts towards experiences of deadness are a matter for concern in psychotherapy. This sphere of experience, although occurring largely outside verbal awareness, may constitute a distinct type of mental process. Three types of mental activity or process are postulated: (i) emergent, pre-representational activity characterised by the sense of liveliness; (ii) Play-related thought or activity typically experienced as enlivening; and (iii) work-related or adaptational thought or activity.
Affect↗
Visual acuity measurement of prosthetic vision: a virtual-reality simulation study.
A virtual-reality simulation tested prosthetic visual acuity for both rectangular and hexagonal phosphene grids. Thirteen normally sighted, untrained subjects were required to identify the Landolt C optotype over ten sessions. Overall performance, performance by filter setting (image analysis), and performance by size and orientation of the Landolt C optotype are reported. The results indicated that the hexagonal grid had a slight (4.1%) but statistically significant (p < 0.0001) performance advantage over the rectangular grid for correct identification of the testing symbol. It was also observed that both the phosphene grids had distinct performance profiles relating to their respective spatial orientation. Over the course of the ten sessions, learning afforded subjects an averaged improved performance of 10%.
Artificial Intelligence↗
The illusion of presence in immersive virtual reality during an fMRI brain scan.
The essence of immersive virtual reality (VR) is the illusion it gives users that they are inside the computer-generated virtual environment. This unusually strong illusion is theorized to contribute to the successful pain reduction observed in burn patients who go into VR during woundcare (www.vrpain.com) and to successful VR exposure therapy for phobias and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The present study demonstrated for the first time that subjects could experience a strong illusion of presence during an fMRI despite the constraints of the fMRI magnet bore (i.e., immobilized head and loud ambient noise).
Adult↗
The subjective sense of presence, emotion recognition, and experienced emotions in auditory virtual environments.
Realistic aural rendering of events in mediated environments is becoming an increasingly important aspect in many multi-modal applications. In a between-group experiment with 45 participants, it was studied how ratings of presence (a sense of being in the mediated environment), emotional reactions to the auditory environment, and emotion recognition vary as a function of number of audio channels (mono, stereo, and six-channel reproduction). The results showed that stereo and six-channel reproduction resulted in significantly stronger changes in emotional reactions than the mono condition. Further, six-channel reproduction received the highest ratings of presence and emotional realism. Taken together, the result suggested that both emotional reactions and ratings of presence increase with spatialized sound. Further, emotional reactions and presence were highly correlated. The results are discussed in relation to theories of mediated presence and emotional reactions in an attempt to further delineate the concept of presence.
Adult↗
Developing a virtual reality-based methodology for people with dementia: a feasibility study.
The aim of this study was to examine the feasibility of virtual reality (VR) technology for use by persons with dementia (PWD). Data were obtained directly from six PWD regarding their experiences with a virtual environment (VE) of a large outdoor park. A user-centered method was developed to assess: (a) presence; (b) user inputs; (c) display quality; (d) simulation fidelity; and (e) overall system usability. The extent to which PWD could perform four functional activities in the VE was also investigated (e.g., mailing a letter). In addition, physical and psychological well-being of PWD while interacting with the VE was assessed objectively by recording heart rate during the VR sessions and subjectively with discrete questionnaire items and real-time prompts. Symptom profiles associated with simulator sickness were assessed with an adapted version of the Simulator Sickness Questionnaire. The study found that PWD to some extent experienced presence; perceived that objects were realistic and moved naturally; generally felt in control of the interaction; and demonstrated little difficulty using a joystick for navigation. The study also demonstrated that VR is an appropriate medium for assessing functional behavior within the context of an ecologically valid VE. PWD did not experience any significant increase in symptoms associated with simulator sickness, or detriments to their psychological and physical well-being. These findings demonstrated that it is feasible to work in VEs with PWD.
Aged↗
Project EMMA: Engaging Media for Mental Health Applications.
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Computer Simulation↗
Effects of age on associating virtual and embodied toys.
Technologies such as videos, toys, and video games are used as tools in delivering education to young children. Do children spontaneously transfer between virtual and real-world mediums as they learn? Fifty-six children learned facts about a toy dog presented through varying levels of technology and interactivity (e.g., video game, stuffed animal, picture books). They then met a similar dog character in a new embodiment (e.g., as a stuffed animal if first met the dog as video character). Would children spontaneously generalize the facts they learned about the dog character across mediums (dynamic and static environments)? Results indicate that younger children were more likely to generalize facts across mediums. Specific aspects of the level of technology and interactivity had little effect.
Child↗
Factors that influence presence in educational virtual environments.
The present article is a part of a project for the measurement of presence in educational virtual environments (VEs), since presence is correlated with higher levels of cognitive performance and emotional development, factors that contribute to knowledge construction. The aim of our study was to investigate the sense of presence of 12-year-old pupils within an educational VE representing an ancient Greek house through a sense of embodiment and the ability to handle task performance, while using various peripheral devices. This is the first report on presence measurement with children, based on the indication that children and adults may apply very unrelated criteria. Our results showed statistically significant differences on the level of tiredness and ease of use in using six different input devices. The combination of the keyboard and mouse and the keyboard on its own were the least tedious and easiest input devices, giving a sense of presence as stated by the pupils. Environmental richness and the high level of interactivity within the VE resulted in a high degree of presence for almost all the pupils. The majority of them felt a sense of presence whilst driving the avatar, indicating that presence is significantly correlated with pupils' degree of association with their virtual bodies. All the pupils felt a sense of presence when wearing the head-mounted display. Our findings are in line with those of other researchers and show evidence of personal, social and environmental presence.
Association Learning↗
Reality check: the role of realism in stress reduction using media technology.
There is a growing interest in the use of virtual and other mediated environments for therapeutic purposes. However, in the domain of restorative environments, virtual reality (VR) technology has hardly been used. Here the tendency has been to use mediated real environments, striving for maximum visual realism. This use of photographic material is mainly based on research in aesthetics judgments that has demonstrated the validity of this type of simulations as representations of real environments. Thus, restoration therapy is developing under the untested assumption that photorealistic images have the optimal level of realism, while in therapeutic applications 'experiential realism' seems to be the key rather than visual realism. The present paper discusses this contrast and briefly describes data of three studies aimed at exploring the importance and meaning of realism in the context of restorative environments.
Communications Media↗
Pilot study for assessing the behaviors of patients with schizophrenia towards a virtual avatar.
This study examined whether a virtual avatar could be perceived as a real human by patients with mental disease, especially schizophrenia, as well as whether a virtual avatar could be applied to acquiring patients' behavior characteristics in a short conversation situation. The virtual avatar has been used for various applications which need to communicate with other person or to train or educate by showing humanlike behavior. Recently, many researches have shown that the virtual avatar technology has been enhanced and the avatar could be perceived like real human. A virtual avatar, standing in a virtual room, was designed for this study. Tasks to approach, initiate a talk, and answer to avatar's questions was assigned to the 11 patients with schizophrenia. As behavioral parameters in the virtual environment, the interpersonal distance and the verbal response time were acquired. In addition, the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) for patients was administered in order to investigate the relationship between patients' symptomatic characteristics and behavior parameters. The interpersonal distance was negatively correlated with the negative syndrome scale, a subscale of PANSS, which is consistent with previous research reporting the relationship between interpersonal distance and a real person's image. The verbal response time, however, was not correlated with any other subscale of PANSS. After analyzing subitems of the negative syndrome of PANSS, two positive correlations were found: one was with blunted affect and the other was with poor rapport. We concluded that the virtual avatar could be perceived as a real human by schizophrenic patients and the avatar could draw the schizophrenic patients' behavior characteristics.
Adult↗
Impact of telepresence levels on internet advertising effects.
This study examined the dimensions of interactivity and vividness to propose three telepresence levels: content presence, social presence, and personal presence. Then, an experiment investigated the impact of different telepresence levels on Internet advertising. The effects of interactions between vividness of visual imagery (VVI) and product types in relation to telepresence levels and advertising effects were also analyzed. The study employed a factorial design: 4 (levels of telepresence) x 2 (product types) x 2 (VVI). Levels of telepresence and product types were both manipulated between subjects. VVI was measured within subjects. Experimental findings showed that high levels of telepresence of an Internet advertisement increased subject recall and recognition. The low VVI respondent group would have greater recognition than traditional advertisements when respondents were exposed above the level 2 (social presence) advertisement and the effect of recognition increased from level 1 (content presence) to level 3 (personal presence). Recognition increased from level 1 (content presence) to level 2 (social presence) for both search and experience product groups; however, only recognition of the experience product group increased in level 3 (personal presence).
Adult↗
Behavioural treatment of the elderly.
In recent years increased interest has been shown in the study of the effectiveness of behavioural treatments of elderly patients. This account briefly reviews the results of some of the studies which have been reported of the application of the behavioural approach to various problems including senile dementia, stroke and neurotic cases. Results of these studies are discussed and directions for future research and treatment application are suggested.
Aged↗