Journal for Christian reflections in the context of social sciences and humanities

Caritas et veritas 2023, 13(1):67-80 | DOI: 10.32725/cetv.2023.007

Virtual Reality as a Possible Means to Meet the Psycho-spiritual Needs of Older Adults in Nursing Homes

Věra Suchomelová1, Karolina Diallo2, Lenka Lhotská3
1 University of South Bohemia in České Budějovice, Faculty of Theology, Department of Education, Kněžská 8, 370 01 České Budějovice
2 University of South Bohemia in České Budějovice, Faculty of Theology, Department of Social Work and Caritas Studies, Kněžská 8, 370 01 České Budějovice
3 Department of Cognitive Systems and Neurosciences, Czech Institute of Informatics, Robotics and Cybernetics, Jugoslávských partyzánů 1580, 160 00 Praha

This article presents how virtual reality can contribute to meeting the needs of residents in nursing homes. As part of the VIREAS project, we conducted a qualitative study in January 2021 in a South Bohemian nursing home. The research sample consisted of 12 residents aged 63 to 100 with different cognitive and sensory-motor levels. Our results show that a properly designed virtual experience can support the fulfilment of self-esteem and value, meaning and continuity of life story, the need to be part of a community, and the need to transcend everyday life. To meet these needs, several factors are important: high-quality content; user-friendly form; proper time for the virtual experience; sufficiently educated activity workers; appropriate communication with older persons before, during, and after the virtual experience; and the opportunity to share their virtual experience with others. We also define some factors that may limit the use of this method in nursing homes.

Keywords: Virtual reality, Nursing homes, Older adults, Activity workers, Needs, Technology

Received: June 1, 2023; Accepted: June 26, 2023; Published: November 29, 2023  Show citation

ACS AIP APA ASA Harvard Chicago Chicago Notes IEEE ISO690 MLA NLM Turabian Vancouver
Suchomelová, V., Diallo, K., & Lhotská, L. (2023). Virtual Reality as a Possible Means to Meet the Psycho-spiritual Needs of Older Adults in Nursing Homes. Caritas et veritas, 13(1), 67-80. doi: 10.32725/cetv.2023.007
Share...
Download citation
  • BibTeX (.bib)
  • Bookends (.ris)
  • EasyBib (.ris)
  • EndNote (.enw)
  • EndNote 8 (.xml)
  • ISI WoS (.isi)
  • Medlars (.medlars)
  • Mendeley (.ris)
  • MODS (.xml)
  • Papers (.ris)
  • RefWorks (.txt)
  • RefManager (.ris)
  • RIS (.ris)
  • MS Word (.xml)
  • Zotero (.ris)
    • Open full article

    References

    1. Appel, L., Eva Appel, Orly Bogler, Micaela Wiseman, Leedan Cohen, Natalie Ein, Howard B. Abrams, and Jennifer L. Campos. 'Older Adults With Cognitive and/or Physical Impairments Can Benefit From Immersive Virtual Reality Experiences: A Feasibility Study'. Frontiers in Medicine, no. 6 (2020). https://doi.org/10.3389/fmed.2019.00329. Go to original source...
    2. Baker, S., Jenny Waycott, Romina Carrasco, Thuong Hoang, and Frank Vetere. 'Exploring the Design of Social VR Experiences with Older Adults'. Proceedings of the 2019 on Designing Interactive Systems Conference. 2019. https://doi.org/10.1145/3322276.3322361. Go to original source...
    3. Büssing, A. 'Spiritual Needs Questionnaire'. 2009. https://www.spiritualneeds.net/. Go to original source...
    4. Cantor, N., and Catherine A. Sanderson. 'Life task participation and well-being: The importance of taking part in daily life'. In Well-Being: The foundations of hedonic psychology, eds. D. Kahneman, E. Diener, and N. Schwarz, 230-243. Russell Sage Foundation, 1999.
    5. Hodge, J., Madeline Balaam, Sandra Hastings, and Kellie Morrissey. 'Exploring the Design of Tailored Virtual Reality Experiences for People with Dementia'. Proceedings of the 2018 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, no. 514 (2018): 1-13. Go to original source...
    6. Chochinov, H. M. Dignity therapy: Final words for final days. Oxford University Press, 2012. Go to original source...
    7. Donath, L., Ronald Rössler, and Oliver Faude, 'Effects of Virtual Reality Training (Exergaming) Compared to Alternative Exercise Training and Passive Control on Standing Balance and Functional Mobility in Healthy Community-Dwelling Seniors: A Meta-Analytical Review'. Sports Medicine 46, no. 9 (2016): 1293-1309. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-016-0485-1. Go to original source...
    8. Eggenberger, P., Vera Schumacher, Marius Angst, Nathan Theill, and Eling de Bruin. 'Does multicomponent physical exercise with simultaneous cognitive training boost cognitive performance in older adults? A 6-month randomized controlled trial with a 1-year follow-up'. Clinical interventions in aging, no. 10 (2015): 1335-1349. https://doi.org/10.2147/CIA.S87732. Go to original source...
    9. Erichsen, N.B., and Arndt Büssing. 'Spiritual Needs of Elderly Living in Residential/Nursing Homes'. Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine, (2013): 1-10. https://doi.org/10.1155/2013/913247. Go to original source...
    10. Erikson, E. H., and Joan M. Erikson. Životní cyklus rozšířený a dokončený: doplněné vydání o devátém stupni vývoje od Joan M. Eriksonové. Nakladatelství Lidové noviny, 1999.
    11. Fernández M., María Dolores, Juana Dolores, Santana Hernández, Jorge Martín Gutiérrez, María Reyes, Henríquez Escuela, and Eulalia Rodríguez Fino. 'Using Communication and Visualization Technologies with Senior Citizens to Facilitate Cultural Access and Self-Improvement'. Computers in Human Behavior, (2017): 329-44. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2016.10.001. Go to original source...
    12. García Rondón, L. M. Loneliness in Older Adults. Elsevier, 2022. https://doi.org/10.1016/C2020-0-04203-9. Go to original source...
    13. Janečková, H., and Marie Vacková. Reminiscence: využití vzpomínek při práci se seniory. Portál, 2010.
    14. Lee, L. N., Mi Jeong Kim, and Won Ju Hwang. 'Potential of Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality Technologies to Promote Wellbeing in Older Adults'. Applied Sciences 9, no. 17 (2019): 3556. https://doi.org/10.3390/app9173556. Go to original source...
    15. Lhotská, L., Jan Husák, Jakub Stejskal, Martin Kotek, Jaromír Doležal, and Jindřich Adolf. 'Role of virtual reality in the life of ageing population'. Neural Network World 32, no. 5 (2022): 253-267. https://doi.org/10.14311/NNW.2022.32.015. Go to original source...
    16. Lifshitz, M., Michiel van Elk, and T.M Luhrmann. 'Absorption and Spiritual Experience: A Review of Evidence and Potential Mechanisms'. Consciousness and Cognition, (2019). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.concog.2019.05.008. Go to original source...
    17. Lin, C. X., Chaiwoo Lee, Dennis Lally, and Joseph F. Coughlin. 'Impact of Virtual Reality (VR) Experience on Older Adults' Well-Being'. Human Aspects of IT for the Aged Population. Applications in Health, Assistance, and Entertainment, (2018): 89-100. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-92037-5_8. Go to original source...
    18. Koenig, H. G. Aging and God: Spiritual Pathways to Mental Health in Midlife and Later Years. New York: Haworth Pastoral Press, 1994.
    19. Roberts, A. R., Bob De Schutter, Kelley Franks, and M. Elise Radina (2018). 'Older Adults' Experiences with Audiovisual Virtual Reality: Perceived Usefulness and Other Factors Influencing Technology Acceptance'. Clinical Gerontologist 42, no. 1 (2018): 27-33. https://doi.org/10.1080/07317115.2018.1442380. Go to original source...
    20. Saredakis, D., Hannah A. Keage, Megan Corlis, Erica S. Ghezzi, Helen Loffler, and Tobias Loetscher. 'The Effect of Reminiscence Therapy Using Virtual Reality on Apathy in Residential Aged Care: Multisite Nonrandomized Controlled Trial'. Journal of Medical Internet Research 23, no. 9 (2021): e29210. https://doi.org/10.2196/29210. Go to original source...
    21. Saredakis, D., Hannah A. Keage, Megan Corlis, and Tobias Loetscher. 'Using Virtual Reality to Improve Apathy in Residential Aged Care: Mixed Methods Study'. Journal of Medical Internet Research 22, no. 6 (2020), e17632. https://doi.org/10.2196/17632. Go to original source...
    22. Schiza, E., Maria Matsangidou, Kleanthis Neokleous, and Constantinos S. Pattichis. 'Virtual Reality Applications for Neurological Disease: A Review'. Frontiers in Robotics and AI, no. 6 (2019). https://doi.org/10.3389/frobt.2019.00100. Go to original source...
    23. Smith, Chelsea. B., Karen L. Y. Wong, Flora To-Miles, Sheila Dunn, Mario Gregorio, Lily Wong, Samantha Tam, Polly Huynh, and Lilian Hung. 'Exploring experiences of loneliness among Canadian long-term care residents during the COVID-19 pandemic: A qualitative study'. International Journal of Older People Nursing 18, no. 1 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1111/opn.12509. Go to original source...
    24. Somrak, A., Iztok Humar, M. Shamin Hossain, Mohammed F. Alhamid, M. Anwar Hossain, and Jože Guna. 'Estimating VR Sickness and user experience using different HMD technologies: An evaluation study'. Future Generation Computer Systems, no. 94 (2019): 302-316. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.future.2018.11.041. Go to original source...
    25. Strauss, A., and Juliet Corbin. Základy kvalitativního výzkumu: postupy a techniky metody zakotvené teorie. Sdružení Podané ruce, 1999.
    26. Stuart, A., Dmitri Katz, Clifford Stevenson, Daniel Gooch, Lydia Harkin, Mohamed Bennasar, Lisa Sanderson et al. 'Loneliness in older people and COVID-19: Applying the social identity approach to digital intervention design'. Computers in Human Behavior Reports, no. 6 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chbr.2022.100179. Go to original source...
    27. Suchomelová, V., 'Senioři a spiritualita: duchovní potřeby v každodenním životě'. Cesta domů, (2016).
    28. Suchomelová, V., and Karolína Diallo. 'Virtuální realita jako způsob aktivizace v domovech pro seniory'. Geriatrie a Gerontologie 8, no. 3. (2019): 115-118.
    29. Suchomelová, V., Karolína Diallo and Michal Vavrečka. 'Virtuální realita jako prostředek k naplnění specifických potřeb seniorů'. Sociální práce/Sociálna práca 21, no. 6 (2021): 5-18.
    30. Suchomelová, V., Lenka Lhotská, and Jan Husák. 'Virtual reality as a tool for keeping the elderly active: Selected issues'. Ageing 2021: Proceedings of the 5th Gerontological Interdisciplinary Conference, (2021): 160-167. https://www.konferencestarnuti.cz/files/Starnuti_2021_sbornik.pdf
    31. Wu, J., Yudan Ma, and Zhanbing Ren. 'Rehabilitative Effects of Virtual Reality Technology for Mild Cognitive Impairment: A Systematic Review With Meta-Analysis'. Frontiers in Psychology, no. 11 (2020): 1811. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.01811. Go to original source...

    This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0), which permits use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original publication is properly cited. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.


    Return to the content