Involving persons with dementia in the evaluation of outdoor environments.
Using virtual reality (VR), we examined the barriers to and facilitators of functioning outdoors in persons with dementia (PwD) and investigated the generalizability of findings in VR to the real world. An existing town center was modeled in VR. PwD took part in both real-world and VR walks. Based on the results, the model was redesigned and then tested again. Performance on the walks improved, and potentially beneficial adaptations to outdoor environments were identified, but limitations of VR as a representation of the real world were also identified. We conclude that VR models, together with a rigorous behavioral testing method, can be a useful tool for the evaluation of outdoor environments and for identifying improvements for PwD.
Van Schaik
Paul
P
School of Social Sciences and Law, University of Teesside, Middlesbrough, United Kingdom. p.van-schaik@tees.ac.uk
Martyr
Anthony
A
Blackman
Tim
T
Robinson
John
J
D000203:Activities of Daily Living; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003198:Computer Simulation; D003704:Dementia / Q000523:psychology* / Q000534:rehabilitation; D004779:Environment Design; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011998:Recreation / Q000523:psychology*; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D013028:Space Perception; D013813:Therapy, Computer-Assisted; D014584:User-Computer Interface