showing 11 related works from this author
How the physical similarity of avatars can influence the learning of emotion regulation strategies in teenagers
2015
Greater emotion regulation when observing a physically similar avatar.Greater frustration induction when observing a physically similar avatar.Greater physical identification with physically similar avatar.Significant change in brain when observing a physically similar avatar. The aim of this study is to evaluate the influence of the physical similarity of avatars with the user on emotion regulation strategy training. In this study twenty-four teenagers observed an avatar (either physically similar to the participant or neutral) that gets frustrated with his/her computer, after which he/she applies an emotion regulation strategy (slow breathing). The intensity of the emotional induction and…
A game for emotional regulation in adolescents: The (body) interface device matters
2016
The aim of this study is to evaluate the role of the type of interface device in the efficacy of a serious game that teaches emotional regulation (ER) strategies in a non-clinical sample of adolescents. We conducted a between-participants experiment in which participants (N = 61) played a frustration induction game, and then an ER game (a breathing strategy game), using one of three types of devices (computer, smartphone, and RGB-D camera). Frustration mood and perceived arousal were the main variables measured. Results revealed a significant interaction between moment (pre-induction phase, post-induction phase, and regulation phase) and the type of interface device used in the frustration …
A VR-based serious game for studying emotional regulation in adolescents
2015
[EN] We all use more or less adapted strategies to confront adverse emotional situations in our lives without being psychologically affected. Emotional Regulation (ER) strategies that we use determine the way in which we feel, express and behave. Moreover, ER strategies are particularly important in adolescents, a population in the age when the deficits of ER strategies can be linked to the appearance of numerous mental health disorders such as depression or anxiety, or disruptive behaviors. Thus, the early detection of dysfunctional ER strategies and the training in adaptive ER strategies will help us to prevent the future occurrence of possible behavioral and psychosocial disorders. In th…
An fMRI Study to Analyze Neural Correlates of Presence during Virtual Reality Experiences
2013
[EN] In the field of virtual reality (VR), many efforts have been made to analyze presence, the sense of being in the virtual world. However, it is only recently that functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) has been used to study presence during an automatic navigation through a virtual environment. In the present work, our aim was to use fMRI to study the sense of presence during a VR-free navigation task, in comparison with visualization of photographs and videos (automatic navigations through the same environment). The main goal was to analyze the usefulness of fMRI for this purpose, evaluating whether, in this context, the interaction between the subject and the environment is perf…
A User-Friendly Tool for Detecting the Stress Level in a Person s Daily Life
2011
[EN] Mental health care represents over a third of the cost of health care to all EU nations and, in USA, it is estimated to be around the 2.5% of the gross national product. Depression and Stress related disorders are the most common mental illnesses. The European project OPTIMI will develop tools to make predictions through the early identification on the onset of the disease. In this paper, we present a user-friendly application developed in the OPTIMI project to detect the stress level in a person's daily life. The results of a first usability study of this application are also presented.
Immersion and emotion: their impact on the sense of presence.
2005
The present study is designed to test the role of immersion and media content in the sense of presence. Specifically, we are interested in the affective valence of the virtual environments. This paper describes an experiment that compares three immersive systems (a PC monitor, a rear projected video wall, and a head-mounted display) and two virtual environments, one involving emotional content and the other not. The purpose of the experiment was to test the interactive role of these two media characteristics (form and content). Scores on two self-report presence measurements were compared among six groups of 10 people each. The results suggest that both immersion and affective content have …
Altered cerebral blood flow velocity features in fibromyalgia patients in resting-state conditions
2017
[EN] The aim of this study is to characterize in resting-state conditions the cerebral blood flow velocity (CBFV) signals of fibromyalgia patients. The anterior and middle cerebral arteries of both hemispheres from 15 women with fibromyalgia and 15 healthy women were monitored using Transcranial Doppler (TCD) during a 5-minute eyes-closed resting period. Several signal processing methods based on time, information theory, frequency and time-frequency analyses were used in order to extract different features to characterize the CBFV signals in the different vessels. Main results indicated that, in comparison with control subjects, fibromyalgia patients showed a higher complexity of the envel…
Changing Induced Moods Via Virtual Reality
2006
Mood Induction Procedures (MIPs) are designed to induce emotional changes in experimental subjects in a controlled way, manipulating variables inside the laboratory. The induced mood should be an experimental analogue of the mood that would occur in a certain natural situation. Our team has developed an MIP using VR (VR-MIP) in order to induce different moods (sadness, happiness, anxiety and relaxation). The virtual environment is a park, which changes according to the mood to be induced. This work will present data about the efficacy of this procedure not only to induce a mood, but also to change after the mood is induced.
Using an adaptive display for the treatment of emotional disorders
2006
A preliminary study on the use of an adaptive display for treating emotional disorders is presented. This adaptive display (named EMMA) varies the contents that are presented depending on the emotions of the user at each moment. The application has been designed to help in the treatment of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Adjustment Disorder (AD). The specific objective of the present work is to test the effectiveness of this adaptive display, specifically the acceptance of the treatment by patients. EMMA's tools are compared with the standard of care for PTSD and AD. Results showed differences only for the variable aversiveness. Participants in the EMMA condition evaluated the tre…
A Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Assessment of Small Animals Phobia Using Virtual Reality as a Stimulus
2014
[EN] Background: To date, still images or videos of real animals have been used in functional magnetic resonance imaging protocols to evaluate the brain activations associated with small animals phobia. Objective: The objective of our study was to evaluate the brain activations associated with small animals phobia through the use of virtual environments. This context will have the added benefit of allowing the subject to move and interact with the environment, giving the subject the illusion of being there. Methods: We have analyzed the brain activation in a group of phobic people while they navigated in a virtual environment that included the small animals that were the object of their pho…
EMMA: An Adaptive Display for Virtual Therapy
2007
Environments used up to now for therapeutic applications are invariable ones. Their contents can not be changed neither by the therapist nor by the patient. However, this is a technical issue that can be solved with current technology. In this paper, we describe a virtual environment that has been developed taking into account this factor. The main technical feature of the environment is that its aspect can be modified controlled by the therapist that conducts the clinical sessions depending on the emotions that the patient is feeling at each moment, and depending on the purpose of the clinical session. The environment has been applied for the treatment of post traumatic stress disorder, pa…