TY - JOUR
T1 - Virtual Reality Relaxation for Stress in Young Adults: A Remotely Delivered Pilot Study in Participants’ Homes
AU - Riches, Simon
AU - Kaleva, Ina
AU - Nicholson, Sarah l.
AU - Payne-Gill, James
AU - Steer, Natalie
AU - Azevedo, Lisa
AU - Vasile, Ruxandra
AU - Rumball, Freya
AU - Fisher, Helen L.
AU - Veling, Wim
AU - Valmaggia, Lucia
N1 - Funding Information:
This project was supported by an Innovation Grant from the Health Innovation Network, the Academic Health Science Network for South London, awarded to Simon Riches and Freya Rumball. Helen L. Fisher was supported by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) Centre for Society and Mental Health at King’s College London (ES/S012567/1).
Publisher Copyright:
© The Author(s) 2024.
PY - 2024/3/28
Y1 - 2024/3/28
N2 - High stress levels experienced by young adults were exacerbated by COVID-19 and traditional stress management techniques can be challenging. Virtual reality (VR) relaxation appears promising and is accessible remotely; however, research on young adults is limited, especially in naturalistic settings. This remotely delivered and controlled mixed-methods study investigated feasibility and acceptability of VR relaxation for young adults (N = 23, mean age = 22.96) at home during the pandemic. VR participants (N = 11) were asked to complete daily VR relaxation sessions (scenes of virtual beaches, mountains, the sea, and more) for a 14-day intervention period, alongside visual analogue scales (VAS) of psychological well-being pre- and post-VR sessions. Post-intervention, VR participants completed semi-structured interviews. Control participants (N = 12) received no intervention. Both groups completed outcome measures of psychological well-being pre- and post-intervention periods to evaluate feasibility of remote data collection. VAS results indicated acceptability of daily VR, with significant short-term increases in relaxation, happiness, and connectedness to nature, and decreases in stress, anxiety, and sadness within VR participants. VR usage and 100% completion of outcome measures indicated feasibility of VR relaxation and remote data collection. Qualitative findings suggest participants found the VR relaxing, but interest diminished over time and technical issues hindered user experience. This suggests a more informal, less prescriptive frequency of VR use may be more appealing for young adults, although adherence may relate to technical issues. Greater interactivity and remote technical assistance within VR could increase engagement. Future research should investigate optimal frequency of use, longer-term impact, and technical issues with a larger sample.
AB - High stress levels experienced by young adults were exacerbated by COVID-19 and traditional stress management techniques can be challenging. Virtual reality (VR) relaxation appears promising and is accessible remotely; however, research on young adults is limited, especially in naturalistic settings. This remotely delivered and controlled mixed-methods study investigated feasibility and acceptability of VR relaxation for young adults (N = 23, mean age = 22.96) at home during the pandemic. VR participants (N = 11) were asked to complete daily VR relaxation sessions (scenes of virtual beaches, mountains, the sea, and more) for a 14-day intervention period, alongside visual analogue scales (VAS) of psychological well-being pre- and post-VR sessions. Post-intervention, VR participants completed semi-structured interviews. Control participants (N = 12) received no intervention. Both groups completed outcome measures of psychological well-being pre- and post-intervention periods to evaluate feasibility of remote data collection. VAS results indicated acceptability of daily VR, with significant short-term increases in relaxation, happiness, and connectedness to nature, and decreases in stress, anxiety, and sadness within VR participants. VR usage and 100% completion of outcome measures indicated feasibility of VR relaxation and remote data collection. Qualitative findings suggest participants found the VR relaxing, but interest diminished over time and technical issues hindered user experience. This suggests a more informal, less prescriptive frequency of VR use may be more appealing for young adults, although adherence may relate to technical issues. Greater interactivity and remote technical assistance within VR could increase engagement. Future research should investigate optimal frequency of use, longer-term impact, and technical issues with a larger sample.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85189000257&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1007/s41347-024-00394-x
DO - 10.1007/s41347-024-00394-x
M3 - Article
SN - 2366-5963
VL - 9
SP - 771
EP - 783
JO - Journal of Technology in Behavioral Science
JF - Journal of Technology in Behavioral Science
IS - 4
ER -