Title: Adaptation and transmission of emotional state, standing balance measures, and upper limb motor control to repeated real postural threats after repeated exposure to a virtual postural threat during quiet standing.
Supervisors: Mark G Carpenter
Committee members: Romeo Chua, Tim Inglis
Abstract:
This study explores the adaptation and transmission of emotional state, standing balance, and upper limb motor control to repeated real postural threats after repeated exposure to a virtual postural threat during quiet standing. Specific alterations in standing balance show a stronger correlation with the emotional reaction to a perceived threat. Virtual Reality (VR) has demonstrated utility in examining postural adjustments linked to fear, anxiety, and motor control under different types of perturbations. However, whether the emotional and postural adaptations learned in VR can be transferred to real scenarios is unknown.
Forty young healthy adults recruited from the University of British Columbia (UBC) will participate in this study. Participants will be randomly assigned to either the VR or control groups. All the participants will be instructed to visit the lab on two separate visits, with 24 to 48-hour intervals between sessions. The subjects in the VR group will be trained to perform quiet standing tasks and motor control tasks repeatedly under HIGH conditions (3.2 m) in a VR environment during their first visit. Meanwhile, the subjects in the control group will be required to perform the same number of the same tasks in a real laboratory environment under LOW conditions (0.8 m). During the second visit, subjects in both groups will stand on a real 3.2-meter-high platform and perform a series of quiet standing tasks and motor control tasks. The emotional state will be assessed using self-report questionaries and electrodermal activity measures, balance will be assessed using forceplate-derived center of pressure (COP), kinematic data during motor control tasks will be gathered by employing the OPTOTRAK motion capture system.
The study aims to assess whether emotional and partial postural adaptations during repeated virtual height exposures can transfer to real heights. The hypothesis predicts that increased balance confidence, decreased fear of falling, and altered cognitive states can partially transfer to real heights. Additionally, it investigates the height effect on upper limb motor control during standing, expecting improved performance after the VR training. Overall, the outcomes of this thesis will provide evidence concerning the effectiveness of utilizing VR as a primary method in kinesiology research, occupational training, and rehabilitation treatments.