Choice and Pro-Social Behavior: The Effect of Choosing Your Hands in a Virtual Reality Perspective-Taking Task

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Abstract/Contents

Abstract: A 2017 study demonstrated taking the perspective of a homeless person in virtual reality (VR) is more effective at increasing empathy and pro-social behavior toward the homeless than other forms of perspective taking tasks. The present study aimed to replicate the results of the aforementioned study, as well as explore the difference in effects when participants chose the skin tone of their virtual hands, had hands assigned to them, or had no hands at all. Furthermore, this study looked at the variation in participants’ physical interaction with the virtual environment in the three conditions and whether tracking data could be used to predict if participants performed pro-social behavior toward the homeless. There was no significant difference in pro-social behavior between participants in the VR perspective taking conditions and participants in the control. Analysis of the tracking data showed no statistically significant differences in movement between the four conditions. Results also did not show a correlation between participant tracking data and whether or not participants performed pro-social behavior toward the homeless.

Type of resource	text
Date created	May 25, 2018

Author	Stickells, Laura
Advisor	Bailenson, Jeremy
Degree granting institution	Stanford University, Department of Communication

Subject	virtual reality
Subject	empathy
Subject	Stanford University Department of Communication
Genre	Thesis

Location	https://purl.stanford.edu/rp546bb8632

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License: This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial No Derivatives 3.0 Unported license (CC BY-NC-ND).

Preferred Citation: Stickells, Laura. (2018). Choice and Pro-Social Behavior: The Effect of Choosing Your Hands in a Virtual Reality Perspective-Taking Task. Stanford Digital Repository. Available at: https://purl.stanford.edu/rp546bb8632

Undergraduate Honors Theses, Department of Communication, Stanford University

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