Community-based pedestrian safety training in virtual reality: A pragmatic trial |
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| Affiliation: | 1. University of Alabama at Birmingham, USA;2. Lincoln University, Lincoln, New Zealand;3. University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, USA;4. Digital Artefacts, LLC, Iowa City, IA, USA;1. Department of Safety, Security and the Environment, Institute of Transport Economics, Oslo, Norway;2. Directorate of Public Roads, Norwegian Public Roads Administration, Norway;1. Department of Psychology, University of Alabama, Birmingham, USA;2. Department of Biostatistics, University of Alabama, Birmingham, USA;1. Department of Psychology at University of Alabama at Birmingham, USA;2. Department of Biostatistics at University of Alabama at Birmingham, USA;1. Department of Industrial Engineering & Management, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, P.O.B. 653, Beer-Sheva 84105, Israel;2. Faculty of Management of Technology, HIT Holon Institute of Technology, P.O.B. 305, Holon 5810201, Israel;1. Harvard Medical School, Dept. of Ophthalmology, Schepens Eye Research Institute, Boston, MA 02114, USA;2. Technical University of Munich, Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, Chair of Ergonomics, 85748 Garching, Germany;1. Dept. of Industrial Engineering & Management, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, P.O.B. 653, Beer-Sheva 84105, Israel;2. Faculty of Management of Technology, HIT Holon Institute of Technology, P.O.B 305, Holon 5810201, Israel |
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| Abstract: | Child pedestrian injuries are a leading cause of mortality and morbidity across the United States and the world. Repeated practice at the cognitive-perceptual task of crossing a street may lead to safer pedestrian behavior. Virtual reality offers a unique opportunity for repeated practice without the risk of actual injury. This study conducted a pre-post within-subjects trial of training children in pedestrian safety using a semi-mobile, semi-immersive virtual pedestrian environment placed at schools and community centers. Pedestrian safety skills among a group of 44 seven- and eight-year-old children were assessed in a laboratory, and then children completed six 15-minute training sessions in the virtual pedestrian environment at their school or community center following pragmatic trial strategies over the course of three weeks. Following training, pedestrian safety skills were re-assessed. Results indicate improvement in delay entering traffic following training. Safe crossings did not demonstrate change. Attention to traffic and time to contact with oncoming vehicles both decreased somewhat, perhaps an indication that training was incomplete and children were in the process of actively learning to be safer pedestrians. The findings suggest virtual reality environments placed in community centers hold promise for teaching children to be safer pedestrians, but future research is needed to determine the optimal training dosage. |
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| Keywords: | Pedestrian safety Virtual reality Children Pragmatic trial Injury prevention |
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