The potential number of use cases for virtual reality remains unclear. In the scientific sector, it seems a few new options are being explored. One option comes in the form of treating autism. Two separate studies have confirmed VR can be of great help in this regard. Especially where autistic children are concerned, major breakthroughs can be expected.
Treating Autism With Virtual Reality
Researchers at both Newcastle University and the University of Waterloo have high hopes for treating autistic children with virtual reality. It can aid in altering patients’ perceptions of time, which may be of great help when dealing with neurological disorders. Autism is just one potential disease to be treated. The same technique can be used for schizophrenia and Parkinson’s disease as well.
Kinesiology post-doctoral fellow Seamas Weech explains:
“The ability to estimate the passage of time with precision is fundamental to our ability to interact with the world. For some individuals, however, the internal clock is maladjusted, causing timing deficiencies that affect perception and action. Studies like ours help us to understand how these deficiencies might be acquired, and how to recalibrate time perception in the brain.”
By making use of a specific VR “game”, the researchers were able to readjust people’s perception of time. As such, it could also affect the patient’s estimate of time by up to 15%. Proving the perception of time is flexible has proven rather difficult so far. Virtual reality technology can help recalibrate the perception within the patient’s brain accordingly. Although more research is needed, the preliminary results seem rather promising.
When two independent studies seem to confirm VR has potential in this regard, an interesting breakthrough has been achieved. once the necessary research has been conducted, the viability of this approach will be determined. Virtual reality is no longer just a consumer-oriented industry by any means. Breakthroughs in science and B2B can elevate virtual reality to a whole new level. It is these developments which may keep VR relevant for many years to come.
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