Titulo Estágio
PhysiologicalSync – a Serious Game for Social Rehabilitation via Interpersonal Biofeedback
Áreas de especialidade
Sistemas Inteligentes
Engenharia de Software
Local do Estágio
CISUC-DEI e CIBIT-ICNAS
Enquadramento
One of the major advantages of Virtual Reality (VR) is that it allows for the creation of an unlimited number of different virtual environments (VE) with shared similarities with the real world, as well as to easily modify them so that incremental changes can be applied to a specific scene. This allied to their application in serious games, i.e., games with an educational purpose, enables the repeated practice of a given task in slightly different settings which may promote the generalization of the learned skills to different scenarios and real-world situations. These solutions represent promising tools for therapeutic and rehabilitation techniques for different disorders, such as phobias or autism [1], by providing a sheltered environment to practice everyday life situations, social interactions, or desensitization to fears, without the confusing stimuli and possible risks of the outside world.
An interesting concept that has been gaining traction in the literature and that can be integrated into serious games is biofeedback. Biofeedback consists of recording and processing physiological information, in such a way that relevant markers of physiological activity are subsequently represented back to the user in a clear and understandable way, so that he tries to change them by endogenously altering his physiological response, all of this in near-real-time [2]. In the case of serious games, however, this concept can be used to tailor them to a specific individual or population, by creating models that, based on real-time physiological signal measurements, assess the emotional state of the user, and adapt the task, the environment, or the rewards accordingly.
Physiological synchrony arises when two or more individuals synchronize their physiological processes when engaging in shared activities. While biofeedback facilitates one’s connection to his own physiological fluctuations, reports are showing that physiological synchrony promotes socialization, a sense of connection and interindividual cooperation [3]. Despite this suggestion, few have attempted to explore the concept of interindividual synchronization in the context of interactive systems and serious games. Joining biofeedback and physiological synchronization in a multi-user setting can facilitate the development of collaborative serious games, whose application can boost the understanding of interpersonal relationships and the role social contexts play in an individual’s internal state.
Objetivo
Develop and evaluate a multi-player collaborative serious game to be integrated with biofeedback model targeting the increase of interpersonal physiological synchrony, for disorders with social deficits (like autism spectrum disorder or social anxiety disorder).
The game must implement interaction mechanisms based on the physiological synchronization of participants. This way, the progression of the game depends on the physiological synchronization of the players, like how they co-vary their respiration or heart rate. This will stimulate the social link between the participants and possibly have a rehabilitation effect on these social disorders.
Plano de Trabalhos - Semestre 1
- State-of-the-art review
- Technology familiarization
- Requirement analysis
- Initial prototyping
Plano de Trabalhos - Semestre 2
- Serious game development
- Testing with control participants
- Analysis of the results
Condições
Access to a interdisciplinary team of neuroscientists, psychologist, informatics engineers and biomedical engineers.
Observações
1. Grossard, C., Grynspan, O., Serret, S., Jouen, A.L., Bailly, K., Cohen, D.: Serious games to teach social interactions and emotions to individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Comput. Educ. 113, 195–211 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2017.05.002
2. Blascovich, J., Loomis, J., Beall, A.C., Swinth, K.R., Hoyt, C.L., Bailenson, J.N.: Immersive virtual environment technology as a methodological tool for social psychology. Psychol. Inq. 13, 103–124 (2002). https://doi.org/10.1207/S15327965PLI1302_01
3. Palumbo, R. V., Marraccini, M.E., Weyandt, L.L., Wilder-Smith, O., McGee, H.A., Liu, S., Goodwin, M.S.: Interpersonal Autonomic Physiology: A Systematic Review of the Literature. 21, 99–141 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1177/1088868316628405
Orientador
Marco Simões
msimoes@dei.uc.pt 📩