Kalantari Saleh, Xu Tong Bill, Mostafavi Armin, Kim Benjamin, Dilanchian Andrew, Lee Angella, Boot Walter R, Czaja Sara J
Human Centered Design, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, USA.
Division of Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine, Center on Aging and Behavioral Research, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York City, New York, USA.
Innov Aging. 2023 Apr 13;7(4):igad031. doi: 10.1093/geroni/igad031. eCollection 2023.
Virtual reality (VR) applications are increasingly being targeted toward older adults as a means to maintain physical and cognitive skills and to connect with others, especially during the coronavirus disease 2019 era. Our knowledge about how older adults interact with VR is limited, however, since this is an emerging area and the related research literature is still rather slim. The current study focused specifically on older adults' reactions to a social-VR environment, examining participant's views about the possibility of meaningful interactions in this format, the impacts of social-VR immersion on mood and attitude, and features of the VR environment that affected these outcomes.
The researchers designed a novel social-VR environment with features intended to prompt conversation and collaborative problem-solving among older adults. Participants were recruited from 3 diverse geographic locations (Tallahassee, FL; Ithaca, NY; and New York City, NY), and were randomly assigned to a partner from one of the other sites for social-VR interaction. The sample consisted of 36 individuals aged 60 and older.
Reactions to the social VR were quite positive. Older adults reported high levels of engagement in the environment and perceived the social VR to be enjoyable and usable. Perceived spatial presence was found to be a central driver of positive outcomes. A majority of the participants indicated a willingness to reconnect with their VR partner in the future. The data also identified important areas for improvement that were of concern to older adults, such as the use of more realistic avatars, larger controllers more suited to aging hands, and more time for training/familiarization.
Overall, these findings suggest that VR can be an effective format for social engagement among older adults.
虚拟现实（VR）应用越来越多地以老年人为目标受众，作为维持身体和认知技能以及与他人建立联系的一种方式，尤其是在2019年冠状病毒病流行期间。然而，我们对老年人如何与VR互动的了解有限，因为这是一个新兴领域，相关研究文献仍然相当稀少。当前的研究特别关注老年人对社交VR环境的反应，考察参与者对这种形式中有意义互动可能性的看法、社交VR沉浸对情绪和态度的影响，以及影响这些结果的VR环境特征。
研究人员设计了一种新颖的社交VR环境，其特点旨在促使老年人之间进行对话和协作解决问题。参与者从3个不同的地理位置招募（佛罗里达州塔拉哈西；纽约州伊萨卡；纽约市），并被随机分配与来自其他地点之一的伙伴进行社交VR互动。样本由36名60岁及以上的个体组成。
对社交VR的反应相当积极。老年人报告在该环境中的参与度很高，并认为社交VR有趣且易用。感知到的空间临场感被发现是积极结果的核心驱动因素。大多数参与者表示愿意在未来与他们的VR伙伴重新联系。数据还确定了老年人关注的重要改进领域，例如使用更逼真的化身、更适合老年人手部的更大控制器，以及更多的训练/熟悉时间。
总体而言，这些发现表明VR可以成为老年人社交参与的一种有效形式。
