Increasing empathy for children in dental students using virtual reality
1Faculty of Dentistry, National University of Singapore, Singapore City, Singapore.
Background:
Virtual reality (VR) can be used to simulate the viewpoint of a child to allow dental students to experience what a child experiences during a dental visit.
Aim:
The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of VR simulation on the empathy and comfort managing children among dental students.
Design:
Sixty dental students experienced a VR scenario created for the study. Empathy levels were examined using the Jefferson Scale of Empathy (JSE). A self-administered questionnaire was used to collect information on self-perceived ability, comfort and impact of the intervention.
Results:
There was a significant (p = .004) increase (indicating greater empathy) in JSE scores between pre-intervention (112.35 ± 9.34) and post-intervention (117.64 ± 10.03), which returned to baseline 3 months later (112.72 ± 10.36). Dental students perceived themselves to be more confident at communicating (6.45 ± 1.64 vs. 5.75 ± 1.71, p = .011) and interacting (6.63 ± 1.44 vs. 6.00 ± 1.78, p = .046) with children after the intervention. All (100%) felt that the VR scenarios helped them better empathize with children. Only 30% revisited the scenario after the intervention, and they were significantly more likely (p < .001) to find it helpful for actual clinical sessions.
Conclusion:
Virtual reality could be used to improve empathy, self-perceived comfort and ability at managing children in dental students. Yet, they should be encouraged to revise using it to maintain this effect.
