Title:	EMOTIONALITY CONSIDERATIONS IN VIRTUAL REALITY AND SIMULATION BASED LEARNING
Author(s):	Miika Lehtonen , Tom Page , Gisli Thorsteinsson
ISBN:	972-8924-05-4
Editors:	Kinshuk, Demetrios Sampson and Pedro Isaías
Year:	2005
Edition:	Single
Keywords:	Emotional, experiential, virtual reality, network based learning, simulations.
Type:	Full Paper
First Page:	26
Last Page:	36
Language:	English
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Full Contents:	click to dowload
Paper Abstract:	This article presents and discusses some theoretical starting points and design considerations for addressing emotional and aesthetic aspects of virtual reality (VR) and simulation based teaching, studying and learning environments. In this article, we note that VR should be viewed upon as an interactive and sensations arousing instrument, a tool or mediator for communication and regulation of psycho-social processes and presence in terms of social distance. As a symbolic artifact to be assessed and perceived from the viewpoint of aesthetics. The most important emotionality aspects of VR could be pointed out to be a tool allows virtual presence and simultaneously allowing possibilities to regulate the social and psychological distance to others. We acknowledge that emotional and aesthetic factors have too often been given little attention by researchers in studying and learning, especially in VR and simulation based environments. Such emotional aspects are considered on five levels of observation beginning from the individual subconscious/conscious interpersonal level continuing to the social, cultural, cross- and transcultural levels. Emotions and emotional processes may be argued to have a strong impact, from a theoretical perspective, in the ways in which one teaches, the willingness toward the environment and how he or she studies and learns in it. Similarly within regard to issues whether one remembers what was studied or taught and supposedly learned. This work focusses on emotionality, particularly from the viewpoint of avatar based VR collaborative solutions, graphical representations and participants of social simulations, which are used, as shared virtual spaces and mental tools: tools for thinking and mental problem solving. In addition, this work considers emotional mediation through the use of such communication technologies. With the provision of a basis for the ability to empathise, entering into another person’s role, emotional reciprocity and as an essential factor for generating a shared and trusting or secure enough mutual emotional state for successful and motivating problem solving and innovation development. Emotional, study-related situations are also discussed from the perspective of one’s cognitive and emotional load as well as via situational anxiety and situational pleasure.
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