Description
Riding the subway is a challenge for many people with anxiety disorders. Waiting on a crowded platform or entering a narrow subway car with unfamiliar passengers can quickly lead to stress-inducing situations. This scenario is especially suitable for patients with social phobia or agoraphobia.
Description of the scenario
Once your patient puts on the VR headset and you start the scenario, they will either be directly inside a moving subway or on a busy platform. In the subway, they are initially alone, but passengers can be added if needed. On the platform, other people are either walking around or waiting for the next train.
The avatars can be optionally activated – they stand, sit, or move like real passengers. When Text-to-Speech is enabled, they respond to the patient with eye contact.
The patient has the following possibilities for a high degree of realism:
- Free movement through the subway and station
- Getting on and off at any station
- Sit on any seat in the car (Note: Prepare a real chair in the therapy room for this)
The therapist can activate the following actions in this scenario:
- Start or arrival of the subway
- Simulation of a stalled train
- Toggling the avatars on or off
- Regulate crowd size (using a slider)
- Deactivate automatic door opening
- Make avatars smile or give a provocative look
- Individually control announcements in the subway
- Activate individual dialogues through Text-to-Speech*
