Evaluating an Education Program That Incorporated Virtual Reality for Teaching Aggression Management: A Pre-Post...

Area of Science:

• Nursing Education
• Healthcare Simulation
• Virtual Reality Applications

Background:

• Virtual reality (VR) offers a safe, simulated environment for training healthcare professionals in high-risk scenarios.
• There is a documented need for effective methods to teach aggression management in nursing curricula.
• Existing literature lacks comprehensive studies on VR's role in aggression management education for nurses.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the acceptability, feasibility, and effectiveness of a VR-based education program for aggression management.
• To assess final-year undergraduate nursing students' confidence and learning experiences.
• To compare the VR approach with traditional didactic teaching methods.

Main Methods:

• A pilot study employing a quantitative pre- and post-education survey design.
• Undergraduate nursing students participated in a VR aggression management program.
• Surveys collected data on student confidence, realism of simulation, experiential learning, and program effectiveness.

Main Results:

• The VR program significantly enhanced nursing students' confidence in managing aggression (p < 0.022).
• Participants found the VR simulation realistic (M=6.18) and conducive to experiential learning (M=6.18).
• The VR program was rated as more effective than traditional teaching methods (M=6.45).

Conclusions:

• The VR education program is an acceptable, feasible, and effective method for teaching aggression management to nursing students.
• VR simulation, coupled with debriefing, enhances learning and confidence in managing aggressive situations.
• Further research with larger cohorts of nursing and healthcare students is warranted to validate these findings.