FROM THE LABS : VR VISION
unfold ; and how VR can be used to desensitize people ’ s phobias , like the fear of heights . They ’ re also exploring how VR can help people develop empathy for those of different races , ethnicities , and backgrounds ; grasp the consequences of the climate emergency ; and practice high-pressure decision-making . Recently , the lab began using VR as an educational tool , as well as providing its teaching software for other institutions .
“ We study the medium of virtual reality , how it works , and what it can do ,” says Bailenson , simply . But the reality is much more complex . The potential for VR to reveal how people learn and how their behavior can be changed is evolving in ever more exciting ways with new and cutting-edge technology .
Using VR to walk in another ’ s shoes Bailenson has been at the forefront of the VR movement for decades , publishing more than 200 academic papers and two Amazon best sellers ,
Infinite Reality and
Experience on Demand . In 2020 , he received the Virtual / Augmented Reality Technical Achievement Award from
the IEEE ( Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers ). Bailenson cofounded Strivr , a software VR company that businesses such as Walmart and sports teams use to train employees in soft skills like customer service or to help players simulate decision-making . Bailenson also consults pro bono for government agencies including the State Department , the US Senate , and the California Supreme Court .
After a year and a half out of the lab , Bailenson ’ s rotating team of roughly 30 staff , programmers , PhD students , postdocs , and visiting scholars are back in person for meetings and brainstorming sessions . They are currently tackling big questions , such as what types of psychological processes are activated when people use VR and AR — and if the medium can , if deployed at scale , fundamentally transform society .
One area of their research looks at understanding others ’ points of view through “ perspective taking ”— a technological spin on walking a mile in another ’ s shoes . VR engages the brain in such a way that a person can experience physically what it ’ s like to be a victim of racism , ageism , and other forms of discrimination . In one test , a subject enters the VR experience and sees themselves as a transformed avatar in a mirror : a Black woman who shifts uneasily while a tall , White man leers over her shoulder and waves his fists threateningly . The stress and nervousness elicited in this charged moment can help the user better understand what it feels like to experience race-based harassment in daily life .
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