Rehabilitation Supported by Immersive Virtual Reality for Adults With Communication Disorders: Semistructured Interviews and Usability Survey Study.
Atiyeh Vaezipour, Danielle Aldridge, Sebastian Koenig and 4 others
PMID 37906228WHAT IT FOUND
Ten adults with acquired communication disorders rated a prototype immersive VR kitchen as average to use and potentially helpful for safe speaking practice.
They did not test whether it improves communication. Hand controllers and the need for support were barriers.
Key findings
01The immersive kitchen VR application was rated as having average usability (System Usability Scale 60.75/100), low total workload (mean 33.3), and low total motion sickness symptoms (mean 18.1).
02Most participants thought VR could be useful for communication therapy because it offered a safe place to practice speaking and could reduce fear of failure.
03Hand controllers were frustrating and unrealistic for many participants, and they wanted training, feedback, and clinician support before using VR for communication rehabilitation.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
Only 10 participants were recruited by convenience sampling, so the views may not represent all adults with acquired communication disorders. Participants were selected for enough cognition and communication to interview (Montreal Cognitive Assessment score 13 or above out of 30) and had mild to moderate disorders, so it says little about severe aphasia, dysarthria, or cognitive-communication impairment. Seven of the 10 participants were well educated, and only 2 had minimal immersive VR experience, so the findings may reflect a specific group. The study did not test whether VR improves communication, compare it with usual therapy, or measure treatment outcomes. Interview transcripts were not returned to participants for comment, which may limit member checking. The SIM:Kitchen application was a research prototype, participants remained seated for safety, and the headset did not allow sound delivery through the headset, so real clinical use may differ. Hand controllers were difficult to use and may be problematic for people with upper-limb weakness or paralysis.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that immersive VR improves communication. This was a usability and interview study with 10 adults who tried a prototype kitchen VR application; it did not measure communication outcomes or compare VR with usual therapy.