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Updated: Aug 18, 2026
Development of a Virtual Reality Assessment of Everyday Living Skills
Published on: April 23, 2014
Case study: using a virtual reality computer game to teach fire safety skills to children diagnosed with fetal
Lynne S Padgett1, Dorothy Strickland, Claire D Coles
1Marcus Institute, A Division of Kennedy-Krieger of Emory University, 1920 Briarcliff Road, Atlanta, Georgia 30329, USA. lpadget@emory.edu
Objective:
To assess the effectiveness of a computer-based virtual reality (VR) game in teaching five children diagnosed with fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) fire safety skills and to generalize these skills to a real world simulation.
Method:
Children participated in a study by using a multiple baseline, multiple probe design. Before the game, no child could correctly describe what actions to take during a home fire. A computerized game allowed them to learn the recommended safety steps in a virtual world. Skill learning and real-world generalization were tested immediately after the intervention and at 1-week post-test.
Results:
All children reached 100% accuracy on the computer intervention, defined as successfully completing each of the safety steps. At the 1-week follow-up, all the children were able to perform the steps correctly in a real world simulation.
Conclusions:
The results suggest that this method of intervention warrants further study as an educational delivery system for children with FAS.
