The use of extended reality (XR) for people with moderate to severe intellectual disabilities (ID): A scoping review

Abstract

BACKGROUND: New technologies have made rapid advances in the field of assistive technologies (AT), with Extended Reality (XR) offering promising results in supporting people with mild intellectual disabilities (ID). Yet, the design and goals of programs for people with mild ID may differ from those for people with moderate and severe ID. It remains unclear how XR technologies are used for people with moderate to severe ID. OBJECTIVE: The study we present in this paper aimed to explore what is known from the existing scientific literature about XR-based interventions for supporting people with moderate to severe intellectual disabilities, including the features of XR content and technology that is used and factors that may impact implementation. METHODS: We conducted a scoping review, searching Cinahl, PubMed, LibSearch, and Google Scholar based on inclusion and exclusion criteria ensuring the focus on XR and moderate to severe ID. We adopted a qualitative content analysis approach to review the papers resulting from the search. RESULTS: In total, we included 16 papers in the review. Most of these focused on XR-based interventions to improve specific skills, such as navigation and daily living skills, in order to increase autonomy and independence. We found a large variety in the content and technology used in these interventions as well as in factors that the authors found to affect the implementation. These factors concern characteristics of users, of caregivers or facilitators, and of the XR environments and systems. The majority of the papers reported studies with small sample sizes, and lacked control groups and follow-up periods to measure long-term effects of XR. CONCLUSIONS: The use of XR for people with moderate to severe ID is an emerging field. Although many authors of the reviewed studies do acknowledge the potential of XR, further evidence is needed. Future research might explore the potential of XR as leisure activity, and might study in detail how features of the XR environment impact behaviour to inform professionals about how to approach their use of XR in order to meet the needs and preferences of people with moderate and severe ID.

Co-design and pilot of a virtual reality intervention to improve mental and physical healthcare accessibility for people with intellectual disability

“…As the development of VR technology continues alongside other technologies such as augmented reality and mixed reality (Maran et al, 2022;Muhaidat et al, 2022), this preliminary study has demonstrated the potential of VR and acceptability for the use of digital technology in people with intellectual disability to help reduce anxiety and improve attendance at health-care appointments.…”

Extended Reality—New Opportunity for People With Disability? Practical and Ethical Considerations

“…Previous research has also included virtual reality for people with disability; however, it has in many cases involved virtual reality on a screen from a distance [ 14 , 15 ], where the user sees themselves in the virtual environment. The question continues to be whether XR offers the same or new opportunities for people with disability, as called for by previous literature reviews [ 16 , 17 ].…”

“…XR promises to empower people with disability by changing the way we learn, accomplish tasks, and interact with each other [ 16 , 21 ]. Being able to partake in activities not possible in the physical world affords a new opportunity for participation [ 21 ] through XR.…”

“…For instance, using a head-mounted display may lead to feeling motion sickness [ 8 ]. These results are based on users without disabilities, however, and we have little knowledge about how this technology affects people with disability when they want to use the technology [ 16 ]. In addition, there is little knowledge about how vision impairment affects and may further be affected by the use of XR [ 23 ].…”

Bridging social marketing and technology in the disability field: an empirical study on the role of cybernetic avatar and social inclusion

“…An area worth exploring is assistive technology devices such as extensive or virtual reality (VR). According to Maran et al (2022), extended reality (XR) offers promising results in supporting people with mild intellectual disabilities. However, the usage of XR is still in its infancy stage.…”