Research Proposal

Allie Lerman
GT Independent Research II
2016-2017

Research Title: Seeing is Believing: Using Virtual Reality to Adapt to Change

Overview of Research:
The field of investigation for this research project is technology, specifically, virtual
reality (VR). While the population generally believes VR is for entertainment and gaming, the
potential for VR extends into many other fields. The focus of the research will be on using VR in
psychology to help people adapt to major changes because these types of changes are difficult
for people to overcome on their own. A synthesis paper will be written to show how this type of
VR exposure will be proven particularly beneficial in the treatment of combat-related
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), the reduction of social biases, and the practicing of
social interactions for people with autism. To collect primary data, the researcher will conduct a
quasi-experiment to determine if changing someones perspective of a group of people can
decrease their bias towards that group. The final product for the research will be a documentary
created to inform high school students about steps they can take to reduce their own implicit
bias. Ultimately, the research will demonstrate that VR can be used as a psychological tool to
help people change the way they think about a certain situation or a specific group of people.

Background and History:

VR has recently become a popular technological experience, but it is far from new. The
earliest form of VR took place in panoramic paintings during the 1800s (Virtual Reality Society,
2016). While these two mediums seem unrelated, they are both centered around the same
concept: creating an immersive experience that makes users or viewers feel a part of the world
they see around them. The first major development in actual VR technology came in 1838 with
the creation of stereoscopic photos and viewers. This occurred because a man named Charles
Wheatstone (2016) discovered that people's eyes see two different two-dimensional images, and
the brain processes these separate images by combining them to create one three-dimensional
image. This meant that stereoscopic images could give users a sense of presence in an alternate
environment. From this revelation, VR became a real possibility, paving the way for the creation
of the first flight simulators and head mounted displays (HMDs). In 1965, Ivan Sutherland, a
major contributor to VR, described the ideal VR system as one being so realistic that a person
could not tell the difference between the virtual world and the real world (Mazuryk & Gervautz,
1996). His ideas would create the roadmap to the VR interfaces of today. Since then,VR has
made its way into TV, movies, and books, creating more popularity for the medium. With the
rapid technological advancements of the 21st Century, VR has become an up-and-coming,
mainstream concept.
In todays society, VR is widely accepted as an immersive experience where users can
interact with objects and other users in a controlled, virtual environment. To accomplish this, VR
technologies have four key elements: virtual worlds, immersion, sensory feedback, and
interactivity (Sherman & Craig, 2003). Virtual worlds comprise the content of a VR experience,
so in order for a VR to exist, there must be a mentally and physically immersive virtual world for
the user to explore. Users must feel that they are involved and present in the virtual world that
they are experiencing, therefore, total immersion is a crucial element of VR. Sensory feedback
provided by the VR system greatly enhances total immersion. Based on a participants physical
position, the system will provide multi-sensory feedback, allowing users to feel like they are
actually interacting with the environment they are seeing (2003). Facilitating this interactivity is
an important quality for VR systems because it makes the systems feel authentic. When a system
possesses these four elements- virtual worlds, immersion, sensory feedback, and interactivity- a
VR is created.

Problem Statement and Rationale:

Change is hard, but it is necessary. The problem with change lies in the ability to
transition from the current state to some unknown future state (Khurana, 2013). The larger the
change, the more difficult it is to overcome. Currently, there are some tools that exist to help
people deal with change, yet these strategies and treatments do not work for everyone. Many
people struggling with change are in need of new, innovative tools to help facilitate the transition
between current state and future state.
VR has become a popular concept explored by many scientists and engineers; however,
many people are unsure of where and how this type of technology can be applied. Psychology is
a current field that seeks to understand the minds of people in order to help them live the best
lives possible. When a person encounters a change, he or she is confronted by something new
and different, making it hard to accept his or her new way of life. VR can be used to aid in the
adaptation of a major change because it possesses the ability to alter how a person thinks or
behaves in a certain situation. However, VR is not able to reach its full potential because many
professionals overlook it as a valid treatment option and assume it is just for gaming. There are
many people suffering from psychological problems that are looking for new tools to help them
function in everyday life. In order for VR to become one of these tools, experts must be informed
and trained on how they could use VR to benefit their clients which is what will be the focus of
the research.

Research Methodology:

Research Question and Hypothesis:

How can virtual reality technology be applied to help people function more effectively in
the world around them?
Virtual reality will have a positive effect as a psychological tool used to aid people
undergoing a transformative change.

Basis of Hypothesis:
The hypothesis focuses on using VR to adapt to change because VR creates a
virtual environment that allows a user to practice a certain situation. Once users learn
how to react appropriately to those situations, they will handle them better in the real
world (Smith, 2010; Virtual reality training, 2014). Thus far, the research has shown
that VR can be used to handle three major changes in how a person views a part of the
world. VR can be used to treat veterans with combat-related PTSD (change how these
people view a traumatic situation), to alter peoples social biases (change how these
 people view a different group of people), and to help people with autism participate in
social situations (change how these people interact with others). These three applications
of VR were chosen by the researcher because they display the ability VR has to change
vastly different types of perceptions, showing the power one tool could have on multiple
aspects of psychology.

Research Design:
Quantitative data will be collected on this topic through a quasi-experiment.
Research will focus on how changing a persons perspective can reduce his/her social
bias (branch off of how VR can be used to alter social biases). Particularly, the researcher
will be analyzing bias towards African-Americans and Caucasians. Participants in this
experiment will take two Implicit Association Tests (a test that determines inherent social
bias). Between the tests, a video will be shown that will allow participants to see
themselves as similar to members of an outgroup (a race different than their own). Once
the post-test is completed, participants will be asked to complete a questionnaire where
they will self-report their determined bias before and after viewing the video. The
questionnaire will also ask participants about how they feel regarding the accuracy of
their test results. Through this form of data collection, the researcher will determine if
there is a correlation between changing a persons perspective and reducing his/her social
bias.

Operational Definitions:
Virtual reality - An immersive form of technology that allows users to interact in virtual
environments and provides multi-sensory feedback to users based on those interactions
Positive effect - A result that shows growth and improvement
Transformative change - An alteration in how someone views the world or a part of it

Product Overview:
The year-long research project will culminate in the creation of a documentary that
showcases how people can reduce their inherent biases. The video will incorporate background
on implicit bias, provide evidence from primary research, and offer how the research findings
can be used to help individuals overcome their biases. VR will be presented in the video as an
effective tool to help alter perspectives because, ideally, it would take the place of the
perspective-altering videos that were used in the primary data collection. This documentary will
be shown to 50-100 high school students who attend an Ignite the Light racial forum. In order
to receive constructive feedback, randomly selected students will be asked to fill out a video
evaluation.

Logistical Considerations:
There will be several logistical components to consider when the researcher completes
her data collection. All questionnaire responses will be anonymous, so the participant will have
to be able to navigate through the entire experiment on his/her own. The researcher will have to
figure out a way to test the clarity of the experimental instructions since she will not be present to
assist during the experiment. Additionally, the researcher may have difficulty finding people to
participate in the experiment because race is a sensitive subject. The final product will require a
lot of time, approval from the principal to show at a school-sponsored event, and access to
movie-editing software. Creating this documentary and collecting primary data with a partner
will require planning and communication. Finishing all of this before the end of the school year
for seniors will depend upon extreme time management and persistence.

Timeline:
Leading up to this point, the researcher has performed background research to develop
her data collection design. Research was done on the Implicit Association Test (IAT) and videos
that could be used in the primary research were identified. The researcher decided that the
primary research would require participants (LRHS faculty) to take two IATs and watch a
perspective-altering video in between tests. After completing this, participants would be asked to
complete a questionnaire to report their results. With this idea in mind, the researcher has gained
approval from Mr.Wasilewski to move forward. The researcher plans to present the data from
this study in the form of a documentary to be shown at a STAD (Students and Teachers Against
Discrimination) event. The students who attend these events are interested in reducing bias, so,
this documentary will provide them with tools they can use to accomplish this goal. A brief
survey will be given to randomly selected students at the event to evaluate the content of the
documentary.

Date to be Task Elaboration of Task Completed?

completed

Week of 3/6 Develop research The researcher will develop a plan for how
design and draft the primary research will be conducted and
cover letter write a cover letter to detail her plan.

Week of 3/13 Gain approval for The researcher will meet with
research design Mr.Wasilewski to get her research design
approved.

Week of 3/20 Finalize primary The researcher will select which videos will
research videos be shown during the primary research.
and begin Also, the researcher will create her
questionnaire questionnaire that will be given to people
after they complete her experiment.

Week of 3/27 Finish The researcher will complete her

questionnaire, put questionnaire and submit it to her teacher
together primary and Mr.Wasilewski for final approval. In
research addition, the researcher will create a
instructions, and Powerpoint to detail the instructions for
send out invitation people participating in her experiment.
to participate in During this week, an invitation will be sent
experiment to staff at LRHS to participate in the
researchers experiment. This invitation will
 include background on the experiment and
the time and place of the experiment.

Weeks of 3/20 Create SLC The researcher will need to design and
and 3/27 Presentation practice her SLC presentation.

Week of 4/3 Conduct The researcher will have LRHS faculty

experiment complete her experiment on a specific day
during this week.

April 4 Data collection The researcher will have written a

and methods paragraph or two on how the she is
collecting data on her topic.

April 5 SLC Presentation The researcher will present at the 2017

Student Learning Conference.

Weeks of 4/10 - Data analysis and The researcher will analyze the data
4/24 final product collected during her experiment and draw
planning conclusions based on that data. This
analysis will be added to her research paper.
The researcher will also work with
Mr.Smart to get approval to incorporate her
documentary into an Ignite the
Lightevent.

Weeks of 4/17 Create The researcher will work with another

and 4/24 documentary and student to create a documentary that focuses
product evaluation on how VR and other tools can be used to
form reduce implicit bias. In addition, a brief (3-5
question) form will be made so that students
can evaluate the documentary.

April 21 Abstract The researcher will have written a brief

paragraph illustrating her research, data
collection, results, and conclusions by this
date.

Week of 5/1 Show The documentary created by the researcher

documentary will be shown to students at an Ignite the
Light event during this week. A few
randomly selected students will be asked to
complete a product evaluation for this
video.

Weeks of 5/1 - Oral presentation The researcher will create and deliver her
 5/15 final oral presentation of the year.

May 5 Revised paper The researcher will have added her data
collection and methods as well as her
results to the synthesis paper by this date.

May 10 Final Product The documentary created by the researcher

will be shown and evaluated by this date.

Approval:

___________________________________________________ _____________
Student Signature Date

___________________________________________________ _____________
Teacher Signature Date
 References:

Khurana, V. K. (2013, January 8). Change process [PowerPoint slides]. Retrieved from

http://www.slideshare.net/VijayKrKhurana/change-process-15904370

Mazuryk, T., & Gervautz, M. (1996). Virtual reality: History, applications, technology, and

future. Retrieved from Vienna University of Technology website:

https://www.cg.tuwien.ac.at/research/publications/1996/mazuryk-1996-VRH/TR-186-2-96-0

6Paper.pdf

Sherman, W. R., & Craig, A. B. (2003). Introduction to virtual reality. In

Understanding virtual reality: Interface, application, and design (pp.

5-13). Retrieved from

https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=b3OJpAMQikAC&oi=fnd&pg=PP1&dq=un

derstanding+virtual+reality:+Interface,+Application,+and+Design&ots=3DLQhqDMRm&si

g=qs1Ux-n5okCNPr5xSQxrcmulKiw#v=onepage&q=understanding%20virtual%20reality%

3A%20Interface%2C%20Application%2C%20and%20Design&f=false

Smith, L. (2010, January 19). Virtual reality exposure therapy to combat PTSD. Retrieved from

https://www.army.mil/article/33128

Virtual Reality Society. (2016). History of virtual reality. Retrieved from

http://www.vrs.org.uk/virtual-reality/history.html

Virtual reality training improves social skills and brain activity. (2014, November 17).

Retrieved from

https://www.autismspeaks.org/science/science-news/virtual-reality-training-improves-social-

skills-and-brain-activity