Step into someone else’s shoes. Experience empathy, altruism, and moral decision-making through immersive virtual reality.
Interaction Designer
In Progress
Sam Lorenzo, Danny Pimentel, Luke Walker, Jason deParrie-Turner, Isaac Wu, Leila Okahata, Tai Le
A narrative-driven VR game designed to explore how engaging in savior-type activities influences players’ empathy, altruism, and moral decision-making. Unlike traditional VR research focused solely on physical rescue tasks, this project expands to include social and moral heroism, examining how everyday scenarios and decision-making can foster prosocial behavior. Players are immersed in a community setting where their actions and decisions directly impact the outcome of a single, cohesive scenario that blends elements of physical challenges, social problem-solving, and moral reflection.
Immersive games provide deep emotional engagement, but there is a gap in understanding how VR environments can effectively cultivate empathy and altruistic behavior. Previous studies have focused on physical rescue tasks, overlooking the potential of social decision-making and moral heroism in virtual settings. This project addresses that gap by exploring how a multi-layered, everyday scenario in an immersive environment can translate to real-world prosocial actions.
Identify how immersive VR experiences that blend physical tasks, social decision-making, and emotional storytelling influence players’ empathy, altruism, and moral reasoning. The findings aim to inform the design of educational and therapeutic interventions while guiding future game development focused on prosocial outcomes.
SCENARIO DEVELOPMENT - COMPLETED
The focus was on designing a single cohesive scenario that incorporates elements from the original three concepts: searching for a lost dog, resolving a friendship conflict, and helping a family in crisis. The scenario challenges players with interconnected physical and social tasks to promote empathy-driven decisions.
Key Activities:
Developed a narrative-driven scenario set in a close-knit community.
Blended physical challenges (e.g., searching for lost items, assisting with emergencies) with social problem-solving (e.g., mediating conflicts, offering emotional support).
Integrated an NPC guide (Sage) to facilitate reflection and highlight the emotional consequences of player choices.
Designed a “What If” feature to illustrate alternative outcomes, reinforcing the impact of moral decisions.
Outcomes:
Created a scenario that engages players emotionally while promoting active decision-making.
Established narrative elements that players found relatable and impactful in fostering empathy.
Developed a ready-to-implement narrative for integration into VR platforms.
IMPLEMENTATION IN HORIZON WORLDS - IN PROGRESS
Building on the completed scenario, in this phase, we focus on implementing the design into Horizon Worlds to test how players engage with the experience in a social VR environment. The implementation involves adapting the narrative-driven game into a multiplayer setting where players interact with NPCs and other participants to complete tasks that promote empathy, altruism, and moral decision-making.
Key Activities:
Adapt the narrative and interactive elements for Horizon Worlds using its platform-specific tools and limitations.
Ensure the scenario maintains immersive storytelling while allowing for multiplayer engagement and social interaction.
Conduct user testing within Horizon Worlds to observe how players’ in-game decisions affect empathy levels and prosocial behavior in a social VR context.
Outcomes:
Assess how the implementation in Horizon Worlds affects player engagement, emotional connection, and decision-making.
Provide insights into how multiplayer VR environments can amplify or diminish the effects of the designed scenario.
Develop best practices for creating empathy-driven experiences in social VR platforms.
Refine the VR environment for improved usability and engagement.
Recruit participants to engage with the scenario in Horizon Worlds.
Collect both qualitative and quantitative data on participants’ prosocial behaviors, emotional engagement, and moral reasoning.