Embedded Files
Glossophobia is the fear of public speaking. It’s an exceptionally common phobia affecting nearly 75% of the population. (Black, 2019) This is a paralyzing fear that presents a real challenge for students to overcome. Psychologists have used virtual reality to help patients overcome their phobias of flying (Winerman, 2005) and heights. (Andrei, 2019)
We have access to a virtual reality laboratory at my institution. Using these resources, we aim to create a virtual environment where students can practice speeches in front of their peers utilizing avatars of their choosing. We believe the coupling of a somewhat anonymous environment with fun and stress-free virtual world will slowly encourage students to overcome their phobia.
This project was inspired by a conversation with a speech professor at Walters State Community College in East Tennessee. We were discussing problematic students and the topic of fear of public speaking was brought up. We decided to combine my computer science and VR background with the speech professor’s background and build a series of activities where students could feel safe in a virtual environment speaking to their peers.
Goals and Objectives
Goals and Objectives
1. Students should show a demonstratable lack of fear after using virtual reality to practice speech.
2. Creation of virtual reality speech course.
3. Creation of institution specific virtual space.
4. Creation of a framework package that can be used to build virtual content for other disciplines.
Settings and Environment
Settings and Environment
The project will take place in the Virtual Reality lab at Motlow State Community College and in virtual worlds built inside of the VR platform VRChat and Engage for Motlow State Community College. There is potential for students to checkout a headset for home use. This is still being investigated as an option for online learning. We will utilize our LMS for the start of the course as students will need to watch lecture videos and perform self-reading and research.
Evaluation Plan
Evaluation Plan
We will evaluate via before and after surveys student and instructor satisfaction. Use hours will be tracked by our laboratory staff and student scores will be compared over a short longitudinal study to determine if there is a real-world benefit to using virtual reality in speech courses. We realistically expect a success rate of 65% to 75%, basing this estimate on the newness of the technology and based on the difficulty of training a person out of a fear.
Andrei, M. (2019, August 6). How virtual reality therapy can help people overcome phobias. Retrieved from ZME Science: https://www.zmescience.com/medicine/virtual-realitytherapy-phobia-06082019/
Black, R. (2019, September 12). Glossophobia (Fear of Public Speaking): Are You Glossophobic? Retrieved from PSYCOM: https://www.psycom.net/glossophobia-fear-ofpublic-speaking
Winerman, L. (2005, July/August). A Virtual Cure. Retrieved from American Psychological Association: https://www.apa.org/monitor/julaug05/cure
Page updated
Google Sites
Report abuse