The communication between therapist and patient in virtual reality: the role of mediation played by computer...

Even if the number of reported application is constantly increasing, understanding how to use immersive virtual reality (VR) to support clinical practice presents a substantial challenge for the designers and users of this emerging technology. These opposite faces are resulting from the peculiar characteristics of VR. In fact, VR is not simply a particular collection of technological hardware, but can be considered as a new medium defined in terms of its effect on both basic and major psychological processes. In particular, the essence of VR is the inclusive relationship between the participant and the virtual environment, where direct experience of the immersive environment constitutes communication. Starting from this vision, the chapter tries to outline a theoretical framework for supporting the development and tuning of clinical oriented VR systems.