G Riva

..Up to now several methodological approaches have been used in the assessment of the brain injured patient's navigational abilities showing a moderate correlation with the impairments observed in everyday contexts...

..This article discusses the possible role of virtual reality in addressing this problem within an integrated treatment approach based on the allocentric lock theory...

..This paper discusses recent evidence and outlines some guidelines for future research in this area...

..It requires the creation and sharing of the cultural web that makes meaningful, and therefore visible, both people and objects populating the environment...

..However, given the nature of this research that does not include a followup study, the obtained results are preliminary only...

..Moreover, it presents the emerging forms of CMC-instant messaging, shared hypermedia, weblogs, and graphical chats-and their possible social and communicative effects...

..These finding suggests that, if sampling control and validity assessment is provided, Internet-based questionnaires can be a suitable alternative to more traditional paper-based measures...

..Moreover, the ECT sample reported better scores in most psychometric tests including EDI-2 and body image scores...

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..This paper intends to investigate the role of virtual reality (VR) in medicine. In particular it outlines the current state of research and technology that is relevant to the development of effective virtual environments in medicine...

..In the experience of optimal presence, biologically and culturally determined cognitive processes are working in harmony--to focus all levels of the self on a significant situation in the external world, whether this is real or virtual...

..In particular, the paper focuses its analysis on both actual applications of VR in clinical psychology and how different clinical perspectives can use this approach to improve the process of therapeutic change...

..Finally, the paper presents and discusses the outcome of a controlled trial, based on the proposed approach, including a 6-month follow-up (211 morbid obese females with a BMI of >40 and a documented history of failures...

..AmI and VR are used to trigger broad empowerment processes induced by a strong sense of presence, leading to greater agency and control over one's actions and environment...

..The significance of these results for the assessment of affective interaction is discussed...

..The main characteristics of the model are: the focus on different frames and objects for each considered unit of research; the mixed use of quantitative and qualitative tools; and the final integration of results in a general framework...

..psicologia.net) that are trying to develop a modular PC-based virtual reality system for the medical market. The paper describes the rationale of the developed modules and the preliminary results obtained...

..The results are discussed with regard to Vitousek, Watson and Wilson (1998, Clinical Psychology Review, 18(4), 391-420) proposal of using the Socratic Method to face denial and resistance of anorectic patients...

..Finally, the paper provides a general introduction to virtual reality (VR), as it relates to its impact on cognitive and functional abilities...

..In fact telemedicine is not simply a technology but a complex process whose successful exploitation needs significant attention to ergonomics, human factors and organizational changes in the structure of the relevant health service...

..VR produces a change with respect to the traditional relationship between client and therapist. Virtual experiences is a third way between "in imagination" and "in vivo" techniques in psychotherapy...

..This article also discusses technological, ergonomical, and human factor issues, and specific guidelines are presented for expanding the use of VR in telemedicine...

..In particular, the developed modules will address the following pathologies: anxiety disorders; male impotence and premature ejaculation; and obesity, bulimia, and binge-eating disorders...

..However, given that this research that does not include a follow-up study, the obtained results are preliminary...

..The chapter details the general technical and clinical characteristics of the developed modules...

..Moreover, the paper focuses its analysis on the possible role of VR in clinical psychology and how it can be used for therapeutic change...

..In each zone the characteristics of the anxiety-related experience are defined by the therapist through a setup menu...

..The third level is concerned with the evaluation of the interaction characteristics required for a successful relationship between the patient and the virtual human...

..The characteristics of the approach will be presented through the description of the clinical protocol...

..In this paper we focus on the characteristics of the new configuration in the relationship between patient and therapist...

..The analysis of the factor loadings also suggested that three items should be removed (teeth, eyes, and ears) from the Italian version...

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..Analyses showed that the Italian version of the inventory can be considered reliable and valid, which suggested its use as screening test for the identification of subjects who may be at risk for over-eating...

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..The chapter, together with the description of the VEBIM theoretical approach, it also presents a study on two preliminary samples (71 normal subjects, uncontrolled study, 48 normal subjects, controlled study) to test its efficacy...

..The results are analyzed to identify the psychosocial roots used to support cooperation in a digital interactive communication...

..This datum suggests that ECT could be better than CBT in relation to the "cost of administration," justifying the added use of VR equipment in the treatment of panic disorders...

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..VR describes the alterations of the motor plans in PD by a point of view different from the clinical one, by testing "pure" mental sequences of the execution of a movement, without the interference of motor disability...