Investigation of effect of different virtual reality environments on saccadic eye movement: Construct validity testing in healthy older adults

Objective: We present the design, reliability, face, content andconstruct validity testing of a virtual reality simulator for transrectalultrasound (TRUS), which allows doctors-in-training to performmultiple different biopsy schemes.Methods: This biopsy system design uses a regular “end-firing”TRUS probe. Movements of the probe are tracked with a micromagneticsensor to dynamically slice through a phantom patient’s3D prostate volume to provide real-time continuous TRUS views.3D TRUS scans during prostate biopsy clinics were recorded.Intrinsic reliability was assessed by comparing the left side of theprostate to the right side of the prostate for each biopsy. A contentand face validity questionnaire was administered to 26 doctors toassess the simulator. Construct validity was assessed by comparingnotes from experts and novices with regards to the time taken andthe accuracy of each biopsy.Results: Imaging data from 50 patients were integrated into thesimulator. The completed VR TRUS simulator uses real patientimages, and is able to provide simulation for 50 cases, with ahaptic interface that uses a standard TRUS probe and biopsy needle.Intrinsic reliability was successfully demonstrated by comparingresults from the left and right sides of the prostate. Face andcontent validity respondents noted the realism of the simulator,and its appropriateness as a teaching model. The simulator wasable to distinguish between experts and novices during constructvalidity testing.Conclusions: A virtual reality TRUS simulator has successfully beencreated. It has promising face, content and construct validity results.

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A-183 A Preliminary Study of Comfort with Computers and Analog Tasks in Relation to Older Adults’ Performance in Virtual Reality

Archives of Clinical Neuropsychology ◽

10.1093/arclin/acaa068.183 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 35 (6) ◽

pp. 978-978

Author(s):

Williams L ◽

Coldiron A ◽

Sandlin A ◽

Flores E ◽

Flair J ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Virtual Reality ◽

Learning And Memory ◽

Ecological Validity ◽

Delayed Recall ◽

Healthy Older Adults ◽

Meal Preparation ◽

Immediate Recall ◽

Procedural Task ◽

Analog Tasks

Abstract Objective Neuropsychologists are using virtual reality to simulate everyday activities in order to increase ecological validity in neuropsychological assessments (Kane & Parsons, 2017). However, relatively little is known about the extent to which comfort with computers and analog tasks influences older adults’ performance on virtual reality-based tasks. Methods Healthy older adults (N = 42) rated how comfortable they are with computers and cooking meals in daily life and completed the Virtual Kitchen Protocol, a measure of procedural learning and memory for meal preparation tasks. Results Both higher comfort with cooking meals in a real kitchen and higher comfort with computers were associated with better learning, immediate recall, and delayed recall of the procedural task in virtual reality. However, comfort with computers did not explain a significant amount of variance in performance beyond comfort cooking in a real kitchen. Conclusion While both comfort with computers and analog versions of tasks may relate to older adults’ learning and memory in virtual reality, performance may be primarily related to analog abilities.

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A-12 Relationships between Performance on the Virtual Environment Grocery Store and Adaptive Functioning among Older Adults

Archives of Clinical Neuropsychology ◽

10.1093/arclin/acab062.30 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 36 (6) ◽

pp. 1052-1052

Author(s):

Danielle R Hardesty ◽

Carmen Chek ◽

Michael Persin ◽

Emma Barr ◽

Hannah Sasser ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Virtual Reality ◽

Construct Validity ◽

Virtual Environment ◽

Real World ◽

Neuropsychological Tests ◽

Adaptive Functioning ◽

Grocery Store ◽

Daily Activities ◽

Functional Capacities

Abstract Background/Problem Neuropsychologists are often asked to evaluate patients’ functional capacities, yet traditional neuropsychological tests have limited correspondence with real-world outcomes. The Virtual Environment Grocery store (VEGS) is a virtual environment that stimulates shopping tasks. Previous research has found support for the construct validity of the VEGS among older adults (Parsons & Barnett, 2017); however, no extant research has examined relationships between the VEGS and adaptive functioning among older adults. Method Older adults (n = 30; age 43–90 M = 77.09, SD = 12.94) were administered the Virtual Reality Grocery Store (VEGS) and the Texas Functional Living Scale (TFLS) and completed the Instruments of Daily Activities (IADLS) Questionnaire. Results VEGS variables explained 39.6% of the variance in self-reported adaptive functioning (I, e., the IADLS) and 60.0% of the variance in performance-based adaptive functioning (i.e., the TFLS). Conclusion These results suggest that the VEGS is a predictor of adaptive functioning – particularly when measured with a performance-based measure – among older adults.

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Construct Validity of the Memory for Intentions Screening Test (MIST) in Healthy Older Adults

Assessment ◽

10.1177/1073191114530774 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 21 (6) ◽

pp. 742-753 ◽

Cited By ~ 27

Author(s):

Rujvi Kamat ◽

Michael Weinborn ◽

Emily J. Kellogg ◽

Romola S. Bucks ◽

Aimee Velnoweth ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Construct Validity ◽

Screening Test ◽

Healthy Older Adults ◽

Memory For Intentions

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Evidence Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation Can Improve Saccadic Eye Movement Control in Older Adults

Vision ◽

10.3390/vision2040042 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 2 (4) ◽

pp. 42 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Po Chen ◽

Andreas Stenling ◽

Liana Machado

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Eye Movement ◽

Direct Current ◽

Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation ◽

Movement Control ◽

Saccadic Eye Movement ◽

Eye Movement Control ◽

Sham Stimulation ◽

Direct Current Stimulation ◽

Age Related

Objectives: Ageing is associated with declines in voluntary eye movement control, which negatively impact the performance of daily activities. Therapies treating saccadic eye movement control deficits are currently lacking. To address the need for an effective therapy to treat age-related deficits in saccadic eye movement control, the current study investigated whether saccadic behaviour in older adults can be improved by anodal transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) over the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex using a montage that has been proven to be effective at improving nonoculomotor control functions. Method: The tDCS protocol entailed a 5 cm × 7 cm anodal electrode and an encephalic cathodal reference electrode positioned over the contralateral supraorbital area. In two experiments, healthy older men completed one active (1.5 mA current for 10 min) and one sham stimulation session, with the session order counterbalanced across participants, and eye movement testing following stimulation. In the first experiment, participants rested during the tDCS (offline), whereas in the follow-up experiment, participants engaged in antisaccades during the tDCS (online). Results: Analyses revealed improvements in saccadic performance following active anodal tDCS relative to sham stimulation in the online experiment, but not in the offline experiment, which was presumably due to the activation of the relevant networks during tDCS promoting more targeted effects. Discussion: These outcomes converge with findings pertaining to nonoculomotor cognitive functions, and provide evidence that tDCS can improve saccadic eye movement control in older adults.

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Development and Feasibility of a Virtual Reality Task for the Cognitive Assessment of Older Adults: The ECO-VR

The Spanish Journal of Psychology ◽

10.1017/sjp.2016.96 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 19 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

Camila R. Oliveira ◽

Brandel José P. Lopes Filho ◽

Michael A. Sugarman ◽

Cristiane S. Esteves ◽

Margarida Maria B. M. P. Lima ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Virtual Reality ◽

Content Analysis ◽

Construct Validity ◽

Cognitive Assessment ◽

Older Persons ◽

Ecological Validity ◽

Three Dimensional ◽

Preliminary Evidence ◽

Pilot Studies

AbstractCognitive assessment with virtual reality (VR) may have superior ecological validity for older adults compared to traditional pencil-and-paper cognitive assessment. However, few studies have reported the development of VR tasks. The aim of this study was to present the development, feasibility, content validity, and preliminary evidence of construct validity of an ecological task of cognitive assessment for older adults in VR (ECO-VR). The tasks were prepared based on theoretical and clinical backgrounds. We had 29 non-expert judges identify virtual visual stimuli and three-dimensional scenarios, and five expert judges assisted with content analysis and developing instructions. Finally, six older persons participated in three pilot studies and thirty older persons participated in the preliminary study to identify construct validity evidence. Data were analyzed by descriptive statistics and partial correlation. Target stimuli and three-dimensional scenarios were judged adequate and the content analysis demonstrated that ECO-VR evaluates temporo-spatial orientation, memory, language and executive functioning. We made significant changes to the instructions after the pilot studies to increase comprehensibility and reduce the completion time. The total score of ECO-VR was positively correlated mainly with performance in executive function (r = .172, p < .05) and memory tests (r = .488, p ≤ .01). The ECO-VR demonstrated feasibility for cognitive assessment in older adults, as well as content and construct validity evidences.

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Saccadic Eye Movement Classification Using ExG Sensors Embedded into a Virtual Reality Headset

2020 IEEE International Conference on Systems, Man, and Cybernetics (SMC) ◽

10.1109/smc42975.2020.9283019 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Marc-Antoine Moinnereau ◽

Alcyr Oliveira ◽

Tiago H. Falk

Keyword(s):

Virtual Reality ◽

Eye Movement ◽

Saccadic Eye Movement ◽

Movement Classification

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A Virtual Kitchen Protocol to Measure Everyday Memory Functioning for Meal Preparation

Brain Sciences ◽

10.3390/brainsci11050571 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (5) ◽

pp. 571

Author(s):

Michael D. Barnett ◽

Lucas G. Childers ◽

Thomas D. Parsons

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Virtual Reality ◽

Young Adults ◽

Construct Validity ◽

Visual Memory ◽

Everyday Memory ◽

Memory Tests ◽

Standardized Measures ◽

Meal Preparation ◽

Memory Functioning

In this study, we developed the Virtual Kitchen Protocol (VKP), a virtual reality-based measure of everyday memory functioning for meal preparation tasks. We investigated the construct validity of the VKP by comparing the performance of young adults (n = 41) and older adults without (n = 52) and with (n = 7) a neurocognitive diagnosis, as well as by examining correlations with standardized measures of verbal and visual memory. The results show that young adults had higher recall than older adults and that the VKP was sensitive to neurocognitive impairment among older adults. The VKP demonstrated moderate to high correlations with other memory tests. These results support the construct validity of the VKP and suggest that it holds promise as a virtual reality-based measure of memory for meal preparation tasks.

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