Virtual reality to foster empathy in disability workers: A feasibility study during COVID-19.
Clare Wilding, Kimberleigh Young, Caroline Cummins and 4 others
PMID 36250222WHAT IT FOUND
Nine new disability support workers described a 15-minute virtual reality simulation as helping them understand the daily frustrations of intellectual disability.
Survey scores rose slightly, but the small sample and lack of a control group mean this cannot prove the program works.
Key findings
01Participants reported the virtual reality experience deepened their understanding of the lived experience of disability, particularly regarding sensory overload and motor difficulties.
02Median scores on empathy questionnaires increased slightly after the intervention, but inferential statistics were not possible due to the small sample size.
03Recruitment was difficult, with only 9 of 70 eligible staff participating, likely due to scheduling constraints and the novelty of the technology.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The sample was very small (n=9) and recruited by convenience, making it impossible to draw statistical conclusions or generalize to all disability workers. There was no control group, so any change in empathy scores cannot be attributed specifically to the VR intervention rather than time or other factors. Participants had high baseline empathy scores, leaving little room for measurable improvement (ceiling effect). The novelty of using VR may have influenced participants' engagement and self-reported empathy, confounding the results. Attrition was high, with only 9 of 70 eligible staff participating, and reasons for non-participation were not collected.
Declared interests
Mercy Connect, the organization where the study took place, commissioned the VR program, provided the equipment, and funded the evaluation. La Trobe University partnered with Mercy Connect to conduct the study.
The easy way to misread this
Do not interpret the increase in survey scores as proof that this VR program effectively builds empathy. The study was a feasibility pilot with only nine participants and no control group, so the authors explicitly state these results provide only 'very weak support' and that inferential analysis was not reliable.