Affective Medicine: a review of Affective Computing efforts in Medical Informatics

Background: Affective computing (AC) is concerned with emotional interactions performed with and through computers. It is defined as “computing that relates to, arises from, or deliberately influences emotions”. AC enables investigation and understanding of the relation between human emotions and health as well as application of assistive and useful technologies in the medical domain. Objectives: 1) To review the general state of the art in AC and its applications in medicine, and 2) to establish synergies between the research communities of AC and medical informatics. Methods: Aspects related to the human affective state as a determinant of the human health are discussed, coupled with an illustration of significant AC research and related literature output. Moreover, affective communication channels are described and their range of application fields is explored through illustrative examples. Results: The presented conferences, European research projects and research publications illustrate the recent increase of interest in the AC area by the medical community. Tele-home healthcare, AmI, ubiquitous monitoring, e-learning and virtual communities with emotionally expressive characters for elderly or impaired people are few areas where the potential of AC has been realized and applications have emerged. Conclusions: A number of gaps can potentially be overcome through the synergy of AC and medical informatics. The application of AC technologies parallels the advancement of the existing state of the art and the introduction of new methods. The amount of work and projects reviewed in this paper witness an ambitious and optimistic synergetic future of the affective medicine field

User-Centered Virtual Reality for Promoting Relaxation: An Innovative Approach

[EN] Virtual reality has been used effectively to promote relaxation and reduce stress. It is possible to find two main approaches to achieve such aims across the literature. The first one is focused on genetic environments filled with relaxing "narratives" to induce control over one's own body and physiological response, while the second one engages the user in virtual reality-mediated activities to empower his/her own abilities to regulate emotion. The scope of the present contribution is to extend the discourse on VR use to promote relaxation, by proposing a third approach. This would be based on VR with personalized content, based on user research to identify important life events. As a second step, distinctive features of such events may be rendered with symbols, activities or other virtual environments contents. According to literature, it is possible that such an approach would obtain more sophisticated and long-lasting relaxation in users. The present contribution explores this innovative theoretical proposal and its potential applications within future research and interventionsPizzoli, SFM.; Mazzocco, K.; Triberti, S.; Monzani, D.; Alcañiz Raya, ML.; Pravettoni, G. (2019). User-Centered Virtual Reality for Promoting Relaxation: An Innovative Approach. Frontiers in Psychology. 10:1-8. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.00479S1810Alcañiz, M., Botella, C., Baños, R. M., Zaragoza, I., & Guixeres, J. (2009). The Intelligent e-Therapy system: a new paradigm for telepsychology and cybertherapy. British Journal of Guidance & Counselling, 37(3), 287-296. doi:10.1080/03069880902957015Alcañiz, M., Botella, C., Rey, B., Baños, R., Lozano, J. A., de la Vega, N. L., … Hospitaler, A. (2007). EMMA: An Adaptive Display for Virtual Therapy. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, 258-265. doi:10.1007/978-3-540-73216-7_29Anderson, A. P., Mayer, M. D., Fellows, A. M., Cowan, D. R., Hegel, M. T., & Buckey, J. C. (2017). Relaxation with Immersive Natural Scenes Presented Using Virtual Reality. Aerospace Medicine and Human Performance, 88(6), 520-526. doi:10.3357/amhp.4747.2017Annemans, L., Redekop, K., & Payne, K. (2013). Current Methodological Issues in the Economic Assessment of Personalized Medicine. Value in Health, 16(6), S20-S26. doi:10.1016/j.jval.2013.06.008Annerstedt, M., Jönsson, P., Wallergård, M., Johansson, G., Karlson, B., Grahn, P., … Währborg, P. (2013). Inducing physiological stress recovery with sounds of nature in a virtual reality forest — Results from a pilot study. Physiology & Behavior, 118, 240-250. doi:10.1016/j.physbeh.2013.05.023Baños, R. M., Botella, C., Alcañiz, M., Liaño, V., Guerrero, B., & Rey, B. (2004). Immersion and Emotion: Their Impact on the Sense of Presence. CyberPsychology & Behavior, 7(6), 734-741. doi:10.1089/cpb.2004.7.734Hoffman, H. G., Patterson, D. R., Soltani, M., Teeley, A., Miller, W., & Sharar, S. R. (2009). Virtual Reality Pain Control during Physical Therapy Range of Motion Exercises for a Patient with Multiple Blunt Force Trauma Injuries. CyberPsychology & Behavior, 12(1), 47-49. doi:10.1089/cpb.2008.0056Baños, R. M., Botella, C., Guillen, V., García-Palacios, A., Quero, S., Bretón-López, J., & Alcañiz, M. (2009). An adaptive display to treat stress-related disorders: EMMA’s World. British Journal of Guidance & Counselling, 37(3), 347-356. doi:10.1080/03069880902957064Baños, R. M., Botella, C., Rubió, I., Quero, S., García-Palacios, A., & Alcañiz, M. (2008). Presence and Emotions in Virtual Environments: The Influence of Stereoscopy. CyberPsychology & Behavior, 11(1), 1-8. doi:10.1089/cpb.2007.9936Baños, R. M., Guillen, V., Quero, S., García-Palacios, A., Alcaniz, M., & Botella, C. (2011). A virtual reality system for the treatment of stress-related disorders: A preliminary analysis of efficacy compared to a standard cognitive behavioral program. International Journal of Human-Computer Studies, 69(9), 602-613. doi:10.1016/j.ijhcs.2011.06.002Bermudez i Badia, S., Quintero, L. V., Cameirao, M. S., Chirico, A., Triberti, S., Cipresso, P., & Gaggioli, A. (2019). Toward Emotionally Adaptive Virtual Reality for Mental Health Applications. IEEE Journal of Biomedical and Health Informatics, 23(5), 1877-1887. doi:10.1109/jbhi.2018.2878846Borkovec, T. D., & Costello, E. (1993). Efficacy of applied relaxation and cognitive-behavioral therapy in the treatment of generalized anxiety disorder. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 61(4), 611-619. doi:10.1037/0022-006x.61.4.611Bosse, T., Gerritsen, C., de Man, J., & Treur, J. (2014). Towards virtual training of emotion regulation. Brain Informatics, 1(1-4), 27-37. doi:10.1007/s40708-014-0004-9Brewer, W. F. (1996). What is recollective memory? Remembering our Past, 19-66. doi:10.1017/cbo9780511527913.002Cohn, M. A., Fredrickson, B. L., Brown, S. L., Mikels, J. A., & Conway, A. M. (2009). Happiness unpacked: Positive emotions increase life satisfaction by building resilience. Emotion, 9(3), 361-368. doi:10.1037/a0015952Fairbanks, R. J., & Wears, R. L. (2008). Hazards With Medical Devices: The Role of Design. Annals of Emergency Medicine, 52(5), 519-521. doi:10.1016/j.annemergmed.2008.07.008Felix, M. M. dos S., Ferreira, M. B. G., da Cruz, L. F., & Barbosa, M. H. (2019). Relaxation Therapy with Guided Imagery for Postoperative Pain Management: An Integrative Review. Pain Management Nursing, 20(1), 3-9. doi:10.1016/j.pmn.2017.10.014Felnhofer, A., Kothgassner, O. D., Schmidt, M., Heinzle, A.-K., Beutl, L., Hlavacs, H., & Kryspin-Exner, I. (2015). Is virtual reality emotionally arousing? Investigating five emotion inducing virtual park scenarios. International Journal of Human-Computer Studies, 82, 48-56. doi:10.1016/j.ijhcs.2015.05.004Ferrer-García, M., & Gutiérrez-Maldonado, J. (2012). The use of virtual reality in the study, assessment, and treatment of body image in eating disorders and nonclinical samples: A review of the literature. Body Image, 9(1), 1-11. doi:10.1016/j.bodyim.2011.10.001Ferrer-Garcia, M., Gutiérrez-Maldonado, J., & Riva, G. (2013). Virtual Reality Based Treatments in Eating Disorders and Obesity: A Review. Journal of Contemporary Psychotherapy, 43(4), 207-221. doi:10.1007/s10879-013-9240-1Fisher, J. D. (1974). Situation-specific variables as determinants of perceived environmental aesthetic quality and perceived crowdedness. Journal of Research in Personality, 8(2), 177-188. doi:10.1016/0092-6566(74)90019-1Folkman, S., & Moskowitz, J. T. (2000). Positive affect and the other side of coping. American Psychologist, 55(6), 647-654. doi:10.1037/0003-066x.55.6.647Fredrickson, B. L. (2001). The role of positive emotions in positive psychology: The broaden-and-build theory of positive emotions. American Psychologist, 56(3), 218-226. doi:10.1037/0003-066x.56.3.218Gilardi, S., Guglielmetti, C., & Pravettoni, G. (2013). Interprofessional team dynamics and information flow management in emergency departments. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 70(6), 1299-1309. doi:10.1111/jan.12284Gonçalves, R., Pedrozo, A. L., Coutinho, E. S. F., Figueira, I., & Ventura, P. (2012). Efficacy of Virtual Reality Exposure Therapy in the Treatment of PTSD: A Systematic Review. PLoS ONE, 7(12), e48469. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0048469Gross, J. J. (1998). The Emerging Field of Emotion Regulation: An Integrative Review. Review of General Psychology, 2(3), 271-299. doi:10.1037/1089-2680.2.3.271Hemenover, S. H., & Bowman, N. D. (2018). Video games, emotion, and emotion regulation: expanding the scope. Annals of the International Communication Association, 42(2), 125-143. doi:10.1080/23808985.2018.1442239Hoffman, H. G., Chambers, G. T., Meyer, W. J., Arceneaux, L. L., Russell, W. J., Seibel, E. J., … Patterson, D. R. (2011). Virtual Reality as an Adjunctive Non-pharmacologic Analgesic for Acute Burn Pain During Medical Procedures. Annals of Behavioral Medicine, 41(2), 183-191. doi:10.1007/s12160-010-9248-7Holland, A. C., & Kensinger, E. A. (2010). Emotion and autobiographical memory. Physics of Life Reviews, 7(1), 88-131. doi:10.1016/j.plrev.2010.01.006Ip, H. H. S., Wong, S. W. L., Chan, D. F. Y., Byrne, J., Li, C., Yuan, V. S. N., … Wong, J. Y. W. (2018). Enhance emotional and social adaptation skills for children with autism spectrum disorder: A virtual reality enabled approach. Computers & Education, 117, 1-15. doi:10.1016/j.compedu.2017.09.010Korpela, K. M., Ylén, M., Tyrväinen, L., & Silvennoinen, H. (2008). Determinants of restorative experiences in everyday favorite places. Health & Place, 14(4), 636-652. doi:10.1016/j.healthplace.2007.10.008Korpela, K. M., & Ylén, M. P. (2009). Effectiveness of Favorite-Place Prescriptions. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 36(5), 435-438. doi:10.1016/j.amepre.2009.01.022Kyle, G., Graefe, A., Manning, R., & Bacon, J. (2004). Effects of place attachment on users’ perceptions of social and environmental conditions in a natural setting. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 24(2), 213-225. doi:10.1016/j.jenvp.2003.12.006Lang, P. J. (s. f.). Fear reduction and fear behavior: Problems in treating a construct. Research in psychotherapy., 90-102. doi:10.1037/10546-004León-Pizarro, C., Gich, I., Barthe, E., Rovirosa, A., Farrús, B., Casas, F., … Arcusa, A. (2007). A randomized trial of the effect of training in relaxation and guided imagery techniques in improving psychological and quality-of-life indices for gynecologic and breast brachytherapy patients. Psycho-Oncology, 16(11), 971-979. doi:10.1002/pon.1171Lobel, A., Granic, I., & Engels, R. C. M. E. (2014). Stressful Gaming, Interoceptive Awareness, and Emotion Regulation Tendencies: A Novel Approach. Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking, 17(4), 222-227. doi:10.1089/cyber.2013.0296Maples-Keller, J. L., Bunnell, B. E., Kim, S.-J., & Rothbaum, B. O. (2017). The Use of Virtual Reality Technology in the Treatment of Anxiety and Other Psychiatric Disorders. Harvard Review of Psychiatry, 25(3), 103-113. doi:10.1097/hrp.0000000000000138Maples-Keller, J. L., Yasinski, C., Manjin, N., & Rothbaum, B. O. (2017). Virtual Reality-Enhanced Extinction of Phobias and Post-Traumatic Stress. Neurotherapeutics, 14(3), 554-563. doi:10.1007/s13311-017-0534-yMarín-Morales, J., Higuera-Trujillo, J. L., Greco, A., Guixeres, J., Llinares, C., Scilingo, E. P., … Valenza, G. (2018). Affective computing in virtual reality: emotion recognition from brain and heartbeat dynamics using wearable sensors. Scientific Reports, 8(1). doi:10.1038/s41598-018-32063-4Marks, I. M., & Gelder, M. G. (1965). A Controlled Retrospective Study of Behaviour Therapy in Phobic Patients. British Journal of Psychiatry, 111(476), 561-573. doi:10.1192/bjp.111.476.561Miller, K. M. (1987). Deep Breathing Relaxation. AORN Journal, 45(2), 484-488. doi:10.1016/s0001-2092(07)68361-6Mitroff, S. R., Biggs, A. T., Adamo, S. H., Dowd, E. W., Winkle, J., & Clark, K. (2015). What can 1 billion trials tell us about visual search? Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance, 41(1), 1-5. doi:10.1037/xhp0000012Mühlberger, A., Herrmann, M. J., Wiedemann, G., Ellgring, H., & Pauli, P. (2001). Repeated exposure of flight phobics to flights in virtual reality. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 39(9), 1033-1050. doi:10.1016/s0005-7967(00)00076-0Oliver, M. B., Bowman, N. D., Woolley, J. K., Rogers, R., Sherrick, B. I., & Chung, M.-Y. (2016). Video games as meaningful entertainment experiences. Psychology of Popular Media Culture, 5(4), 390-405. doi:10.1037/ppm0000066Oliver, M. B., Hartmann, T., & Woolley, J. K. (2012). Elevation in Response to Entertainment Portrayals of Moral Virtue. Human Communication Research, 38(3), 360-378. doi:10.1111/j.1468-2958.2012.01427.xParsons, T. D., & Reinebold, J. L. (2012). Adaptive virtual environments for neuropsychological assessment in serious games. IEEE Transactions on Consumer Electronics, 58(2), 197-204. doi:10.1109/tce.2012.6227413Parsons, T. D., & Rizzo, A. A. (2008). Affective outcomes of virtual reality exposure therapy for anxiety and specific phobias: A meta-analysis. Journal of Behavior Therapy and Experimental Psychiatry, 39(3), 250-261. doi:10.1016/j.jbtep.2007.07.007Parsons, T. D., Rizzo, A. A., Rogers, S., & York, P. (2009). Virtual reality in paediatric rehabilitation: A review. Developmental Neurorehabilitation, 12(4), 224-238. doi:10.1080/17518420902991719Picard, R. W., Vyzas, E., & Healey, J. (2001). Toward machine emotional intelligence: analysis of affective physiological state. IEEE Transactions on Pattern Analysis and Machine Intelligence, 23(10), 1175-1191. doi:10.1109/34.954607Pressman, S. D., & Cohen, S. (2005). Does positive affect influence health? Psychological Bulletin, 131(6), 925-971. doi:10.1037/0033-2909.131.6.925Renzi, C., Riva, S., Masiero, M., & Pravettoni, G. (2016). The choice dilemma in chronic hematological conditions: Why choosing is not only a medical issue? A psycho-cognitive perspective. Critical Reviews in Oncology/Hematology, 99, 134-140. doi:10.1016/j.critrevonc.2015.12.010Riva, G., Mantovani, F., Capideville, C. S., Preziosa, A., Morganti, F., Villani, D., … Alcañiz, M. (2007). Affective Interactions Using Virtual Reality: The Link between Presence and Emotions. CyberPsychology & Behavior, 10(1), 45-56. doi:10.1089/cpb.2006.9993Rizzo, A., Parsons, T. D., Lange, B., Kenny, P., Buckwalter, J. G., Rothbaum, B., … Reger, G. (2011). Virtual Reality Goes to War: A Brief Review of the Future of Military Behavioral Healthcare. Journal of Clinical Psychology in Medical Settings, 18(2), 176-187. doi:10.1007/s10880-011-9247-2Rodríguez, A., Rey, B., Clemente, M., Wrzesien, M., & Alcañiz, M. (2015). Assessing brain activations associated with emotional regulation during virtual reality mood induction procedures. Expert Systems with Applications, 42(3), 1699-1709. doi:10.1016/j.eswa.2014.10.006Rodriguez, A., Rey, B., Vara, M. D., Wrzesien, M., Alcaniz, M., Banos, R. M., & Perez-Lopez, D. (2015). A VR-Based Serious Game for Studying Emotional Regulation in Adolescents. IEEE Computer Graphics and Applications, 35(1), 65-73. doi:10.1109/mcg.2015.8Rubin, D. C. (2005). A Basic-Systems Approach to Autobiographical Memory. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 14(2), 79-83. doi:10.1111/j.0963-7214.2005.00339.xRubin, D. C., & Kozin, M. (1984). Vivid memories. Cognition, 16(1), 81-95. doi:10.1016/0010-0277(84)90037-4Saadatmand, V., Rejeh, N., Heravi-Karimooi, M., Tadrisi, S. D., Zayeri, F., Vaismoradi, M., & Jasper, M. (2013). Effect of nature-based sounds’ intervention on agitation, anxiety, and stress in patients under mechanical ventilator support: A randomised controlled trial. International Journal of Nursing Studies, 50(7), 895-904. doi:10.1016/j.ijnurstu.2012.11.018Serino, S., Triberti, S., Villani, D., Cipresso, P., Gaggioli, A., & Riva, G. (2013). Toward a validation of cyber-interventions for stress disorders based on stress inoculation training: a systematic review. Virtual Reality, 18(1), 73-87. doi:10.1007/s10055-013-0237-6Triberti, S., & Barello, S. (2016). The quest for engaging AmI: Patient engagement and experience design tools to promote effective assisted living. Journal of Biomedical Informatics, 63, 150-156. doi:10.1016/j.jbi.2016.08.010Tugade, M. M., Fredrickson, B. L., & Feldman Barrett, L. (2004). Psychological Resilience and Positive Emotional Granularity: Examining the Benefits of Positive Emotions on Coping and Health. Journal of Personality, 72(6), 1161-1190. doi:10.1111/j.1467-6494.2004.00294.xTulving, E. (1985). Memory and consciousness. Canadian Psychology/Psychologie canadienne, 26(1), 1-12. doi:10.1037/h0080017Tusek, D. L., & Cwynar, R. E. (2000). Strategies for Implementing a Guided Imagery Program to Enhance Patient Experience. AACN Clinical Issues: Advanced Practice in Acute & Critical Care, 11(1), 68-76. doi:10.1097/00044067-200002000-00009Vara, M. D., Baños, R. M., Rasal, P., Rodríguez, A., Rey, B., Wrzesien, M., & Alcañiz, M. (2016). A game for emotional regulation in adolescents: The (body) interface device matters. Computers in Human Behavior, 57, 267-273. doi:10.1016/j.chb.2015.12.033Vempati, R. P., & Telles, S. (2002). Yoga-Based Guided Relaxation Reduces Sympathetic Activity Judged from Baseline Levels. Psychological Reports, 90(2), 487-494. doi:10.2466/pr0.2002.90.2.487Villani, D., Carissoli, C., Triberti, S., Marchetti, A., Gilli, G., & Riva, G. (2018). Videogames for Emotion Regulation: A Systematic Review. Games for Health Journal, 7(2), 85-99. doi:10.1089/g4h.2017.0108Villani, D., Riva, F., & Riva, G. (2007). New technologies for relaxation: The role of presence. International Journal of Stress Management, 14(3), 260-274. doi:10.1037/1072-5245.14.3.260Villani, D., Rotasperti, C., Cipresso, P., Triberti, S., Carissoli, C., & Riva, G. (2016). Assessing the Emotional State of Job Applicants Through a Virtual Reality Simulation: A Psycho-Physiological Study. eHealth 360°, 119-126. doi:10.1007/978-3-319-49655-9_16Witvliet, C. van O., Ludwig, T. E., & Laan, K. L. V. (2001). Granting Forgiveness or Harboring Grudges: Implications for Emotion, Physiology, and Health. Psychological Science, 12(2), 117-123. doi:10.1111/1467-9280.00320Wright, D., & Gaskell, G. (1992). The Construction and Function of Vivid Memories. Theoretical Perspectives on Autobiographical Memory, 275-292. doi:10.1007/978-94-015-7967-4_16Wrzesien, M., Rodríguez, A., Rey, B., Alcañiz, M., Baños, R. M., & Vara, M. D. (2015). How the physical similarity of avatars can influence the learning of emotion regulation strategies in teenagers. Computers in Human Behavior, 43, 101-111. doi:10.1016/j.chb.2014.09.02

Virtual reality exposure-based therapy for the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder: a review of its efficacy, the adequacy of the treatment protocol, and its acceptability

Introduction The essential feature of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is the development of characteristic symptoms following exposure to one or more traumatic events. According to evidence-based intervention guidelines and empirical evidence, one of the most extensively researched and validated treatments for PTSD is prolonged exposure to traumatic events; however, exposure therapy can present some limitations. Virtual reality (VR) can help to improve prolonged exposure because it creates fictitious, safe, and controllable situations that can enhance emotional engagement and acceptance. Objective In addition to carrying out a review to evaluate the efficacy of VR exposure-based therapy (VR-EBT) for the treatment of PTSD, the aim of this study was to contribute to analyzing the use of VR-EBT by: first, evaluating the adequacy of psychological treatment protocols that use VR-EBT to treat PTSD; and second, analyzing the acceptability of VR-EBT. Method We performed a replica search with descriptors and databases used in two previous reviews and updated to April 2015. Next, we carried out an evaluation of the efficacy, adequacy, and acceptability of VR-EBT protocols. Results Results showed that VR-EBT was effective in the treatment of PTSD. The findings related to adequacy showed that not all studies using VR-EBT reported having followed the clinical guidelines for evidence-based interventions in the treatment of PTSD. Regarding acceptability, few studies evaluated this subject. However, the findings are very promising, and patients reported high acceptability and satisfaction with the inclusion of VR in the treatment of PTSD. Conclusion The main weaknesses identified in this review focus on the need for more controlled studies, the need to standardize treatment protocols using VR-EBT, and the need to include assessments of acceptability and related variables. Finally, this paper highlights some directions and future perspectives for using VR-EBT in PTSD treatmen

Elevating metaverse virtual reality experiences through network-integrated neuro-fuzzy emotion recognition and adaptive content generation algorithms

Interactions between individuals and digital material have completely changed with the advent of the Metaverse. Due to this, there is an immediate need to construct cutting-edge technology that can recognize the emotions of users and continuously provide material that is relevant to their psychological states, improving their overall experience. An inventive method that combines natural language processing adaptive content generation algorithms and neuro-fuzzy-based support vector machines natural language processing (SVM-NLP) is proposed by researchers to meet this demand. With this merging, the Metaverse will be able to offer highly tailored and engaging experiences. Initially, a neuro-fuzzy algorithm was developed to identify people's emotional moods from their physiological reactions and other biometric information. Fuzzy Logic and Support Vector Machine work together to manage the inherent ambiguity and unpredictability, which results in a more exact and accurate categorization of emotions. A key component of the ACGA is NLP technology, which uses real-time emotional data to dynamically modify and personalize characters, stories, and interactive features in the Metaverse. The novelty of the proposed approach lies in the innovative integration of neuro-fuzzy-based SVM-NLP algorithms to accurately recognize and adapt to users' emotional states, enhancing the Metaverse experience across various applications. The proposed method is implemented using Python software. This adaptive approach significantly enhances users' immersion, emotional involvement, and overall satisfaction within the augmented reality environment by tailoring information to their responses. The findings show that the SVM-NLP emotion identification algorithm based on neuro-fuzzy, has a high degree of accuracy in recognizing emotional states, which holds promise for creating a Metaverse that is more emotionally compelling and immersive. Stronger human–computer interactions and a wider range of applications, including virtual therapy, educational resources, entertainment, and social media networking, might be made possible by integrating SVM-NLP. These sophisticated systems are around 92% accurate in interpreting the emotions

Human-centred design methods : developing scenarios for robot assisted play informed by user panels and field trials

Original article can be found at: http://www.sciencedirect.com/ Copyright ElsevierThis article describes the user-centred development of play scenarios for robot assisted play, as part of the multidisciplinary IROMEC1 project that develops a novel robotic toy for children with special needs. The project investigates how robotic toys can become social mediators, encouraging children with special needs to discover a range of play styles, from solitary to collaborative play (with peers, carers/teachers, parents, etc.). This article explains the developmental process of constructing relevant play scenarios for children with different special needs. Results are presented from consultation with panel of experts (therapists, teachers, parents) who advised on the play needs for the various target user groups and who helped investigate how robotic toys could be used as a play tool to assist in the children’s development. Examples from experimental investigations are provided which have informed the development of scenarios throughout the design process. We conclude by pointing out the potential benefit of this work to a variety of research projects and applications involving human–robot interactions.Peer reviewe

Cross validation of bi-modal health-related stress assessment

This study explores the feasibility of objective and ubiquitous stress assessment. 25 post-traumatic stress disorder patients participated in a controlled storytelling (ST) study and an ecologically valid reliving (RL) study. The two studies were meant to represent an early and a late therapy session, and each consisted of a "happy" and a "stress triggering" part. Two instruments were chosen to assess the stress level of the patients at various point in time during therapy: (i) speech, used as an objective and ubiquitous stress indicator and (ii) the subjective unit of distress (SUD), a clinically validated Likert scale. In total, 13 statistical parameters were derived from each of five speech features: amplitude, zero-crossings, power, high-frequency power, and pitch. To model the emotional state of the patients, 28 parameters were selected from this set by means of a linear regression model and, subsequently, compressed into 11 principal components. The SUD and speech model were cross-validated, using 3 machine learning algorithms. Between 90% (2 SUD levels) and 39% (10 SUD levels) correct classification was achieved. The two sessions could be discriminated in 89% (for ST) and 77% (for RL) of the cases. This report fills a gap between laboratory and clinical studies, and its results emphasize the usefulness of Computer Aided Diagnostics (CAD) for mental health care

Designing interactive virtual environments with feedback in health applications.

One of the most important factors to influence user experience in human-computer interaction is the user emotional reaction. Interactive environments including serious games that are responsive to user emotions improve their effectiveness and user satisfactions. Testing and training for user emotional competence is meaningful in healthcare field, which has motivated us to analyze immersive affective games using emotional feedbacks. In this dissertation, a systematic model of designing interactive environment is presented, which consists of three essential modules: affect modeling, affect recognition, and affect control. In order to collect data for analysis and construct these modules, a series of experiments were conducted using virtual reality (VR) to evoke user emotional reactions and monitoring the reactions by physiological data. The analysis results lead to the novel approach of a framework to design affective gaming in virtual reality, including the descriptions on the aspects of interaction mechanism, graph-based structure, and user modeling. Oculus Rift was used in the experiments to provide immersive virtual reality with affective scenarios, and a sample application was implemented as cross-platform VR physical training serious game for elderly people to demonstrate the essential parts of the framework. The measurements of playability and effectiveness are discussed. The introduced framework should be used as a guiding principle for designing affective VR serious games. Possible healthcare applications include emotion competence training, educational softwares, as well as therapy methods

Кибербезопасность в образовательных сетях

The paper discusses the possible impact of digital space on a human, as well as human-related directions in cyber-security analysis in the education: levels of cyber-security, social engineering role in cyber-security of education, “cognitive vaccination”. “A Human” is considered in general meaning, mainly as a learner. The analysis is provided on the basis of experience of hybrid war in Ukraine that have demonstrated the change of the target of military operations from military personnel and critical infrastructure to a human in general. Young people are the vulnerable group that can be the main goal of cognitive operations in long-term perspective, and they are the weakest link of the System.У статті обговорюється можливий вплив цифрового простору на людину, а також пов'язані з людиною напрямки кібербезпеки в освіті: рівні кібербезпеки, роль соціального інжинірингу в кібербезпеці освіти, «когнітивна вакцинація». «Людина» розглядається в загальному значенні, головним чином як та, що навчається. Аналіз надається на основі досвіду гібридної війни в Україні, яка продемонструвала зміну цілей військових операцій з військовослужбовців та критичної інфраструктури на людину загалом. Молодь - це вразлива група, яка може бути основною метою таких операцій в довгостроковій перспективі, і вони є найслабшою ланкою системи.В документе обсуждается возможное влияние цифрового пространства на человека, а также связанные с ним направления в анализе кибербезопасности в образовании: уровни кибербезопасности, роль социальной инженерии в кибербезопасности образования, «когнитивная вакцинация». «Человек» рассматривается в общем смысле, в основном как ученик. Анализ представлен на основе опыта гибридной войны в Украине, которая продемонстрировала изменение цели военных действий с военного персонала и критической инфраструктуры на человека в целом. Молодые люди являются уязвимой группой, которая может быть главной целью когнитивных операций в долгосрочной перспективе, и они являются самым слабым звеном Систем

The Practical Applications of Video Games Beyond Entertainment

Much of the attention directed toward video games is focused on their role as entertainment. However, researchers have found that video games can have other, more practical uses for society. This thesis is designed to examine three specific examples of the practical applications of video games: video games in education, video games as accessible technology, and the social uses of video games. This project is based on pre-existing research conducted by professionals studying the aforementioned subtopics. Anecdotal stories from educators, people with disabilities, and developers are also discussed. The thesis explores specific examples of video games being used practically, and the researcher suggests several opportunities for further research on the topic