The Use of Virtual Reality as a Potential Restorative Environment in School During Recess

Abstract

Previous research has found out that simulated, Virtual Reality (VR)-based forests can bring equal or even higher restorative effects than real forests. In this study, a Virtual Reality (VR)-based forest was created in order to compare whether VR-based forest can possess restorative effects in the context of primary school, and how the possible effects compare to restorative effects of a normal recess or to a situation when there is no recess at all. The effects were measured using Restorative Outcome Scale (ROS) and problem-solving tasks after the intervention. The results showed that VR-based forest had the highest restorative effect. There was a significant difference between VR-forest and no recess-groups, but no statistical difference between VR-forest and normal recess-groups. Future research avenues and implications of virtual forests are discussed.