Assessment of brain activities in immersive environments.

The primary goal of this study was to establish an objective baseline for subjects who participated in a study in an immersed environment created for the virtual reality therapy (VRT) situation. Since the effects of VRT on the subjects treated for neurosis have traditionally been measured by subjective measurements, there is a need to include objective measures. This will improve and validate the effectiveness of VRT. Fifteen college students participated in this study. Specifically, the researchers measured the activity of the subjects' brainwaves in response to the VRT using EEG technology. The preliminary data indicated that, in most cases, subjects had a decline in brain wave activity between what is deemed a normal / baseline brain activity and the brainwave activity recorded when they were when they were connected to the virtual reality equipment and under influence of an immersive scene. In rare instances, there were some subjects that showed extreme increases in brain activities. In addition, the data indicated that, in most cases, subjects are more relaxed while under the immersive influence with respect to brain activities than those that are not.