VR, Neurodiversity & perceptual differences

seminar 4, reading on neurodiversity, synaesthesia & aphantasia

VR & neurodiversity

• allows us to research perceptual & cognitive processes

• can explore individual differences in neurodiversity by stimulating sensory input

  • crucial for developing interventions

• allows researchers to create controlled environments that can be tailored to explore specific cognitive processes

• VR results provide deeper insights into how neurodivergent individuals perceive & process info

• further research is needed to explore how VR can be used to better understand the perceptual experiences of individuals with ADHD

Visual processing & VR (University of Glasgow) (Savickaite, 2023)

• Study explored how individuals w/varying levels of neurodivergent traits (Autism & ADHD) process complex visual information

• P w/higher autistic traits showed more detailed but less organised visual recall on the Rey–Osterrieth Complex Figure (ROCF) task.

• Those scoring high on the attention-to-detail subscale of the Autism Spectrum Quotient performed better on fine-detail tasks, suggesting this trait enhances detailed visual memory in VR settings

• For ADHD traits, no significant relationship was found

  • may be due to ADHD impacting multiple cognitive processes

• used miced method to see measure of drawing strat whil post task itnerviews offering valuable insight 

VR for mixed methods research

• VR can facilitate a mix of qualitative (P’s subejctive experience) & quantitative (spatial coord)

• By combining methods, researchers can gain a more comprehensive understanding of individual differences in perception, ultimately informing more effective interventions and support for neurodiverse populations

Autism has difficulties with

• social interactions

• sensory processing 

• repetitive behaviour

• affects 1% of UK pop

• is not a deficit but a difference in perceptual experience

Autobiographical accounts

• lot of the understanding about perceptual differences is from autobiographical or lab studies

Perceptual organisation

• global processing - you get a gist of everything

• local processing - you focus on specific elements

• autistic individuals tend to have more local processing 

Navon task

• a way of looking into global vs local processing

VR applications in autism 

• most social interaction training and intervention

  • but concerns whether we are ateaching them to mask better 

• sensory aspect of perception have no been investigated

Rey Osterrieth Complex Figure (ROCF) task

• common used task

• a drawing task to look at global vs local processing

• you are asked to draw it from memory immediately and after time

experiment 1 (University of Glasgow) (Savickaite, 2023)

• Pilot/Exploratory 2d

• Local & Global processing styles

• ASD &ADHD*

• ROCF task

• found higher attention switching, communication and attention to detail was found to be sigificant in the local

• GO OVER THIS PAPER

experiment 2 (University of Glasgow) (Savickaite, 2023)

• VR & ROCF task

Discussion (University of Glasgow) (Savickaite, 2023)

• task was suitable but no 3D so future research

• Individual differences 

• Problems with VR itself

• Too much data

  • had coord for looking at their process but it was limited use

  • started collecting qual (found how they were approaching it)

• Different statistical analysis required

key take aways (Savickaite, 2023)

• comparing measure to formalise 3 groups of patterns

  • organisational, outline or part-orientated

• identified that there are limitations of ROCF stuff

Experiment 3 (University of Glasgow)

• focus on chapter 7

• final goal of study

• provided prompts of drawing

• thematic analysis 

  • autisitic sensoru differences

  • masking

  • sharing perspective 

• enjoyed control of enviroment

• ended up being theraputic task to get people talking

• could be refined to be a therapy

Synaesthesia

• stimulation in one sensory or cognitive pathway leads to involuntary experiences in a second sensory or cognitive pathway

  • cross-wiring of senses creates vivid, unique experiences that are both multi-sensory and consistent over time

• 3x higher in autistic individuals than general pop (Baron-Cohen, 2013)

why study synaesthetes in VR

• VR helps simulate a world where sound has color or letters have texture

• helps both researchers & non-synaesthetes appreciate the complexity of the condition

Synaesthesia & Aphantasia

• neurodiverse conditions related to perceptual experience 

• offer unique windows into how the brain processes sensory information and forms perceptions

Aphantasia

• complete absence of voluntary visual mental imagery

• cannot summon images in their mind’s eye when thinking about objects, people, or scenes

• often referred to as the "blind mind,"

• represents the opposite end of the spectrum from those with vivid mental imagery

why study aphantasia in VR

• VR allows researchers to observe how individuals without mental imagery interact with tasks typically reliant on visualization, such as drawing or object manipulation

• exploring perceptual deficits

VR & Synaesthesia/Aphantasia

• VR has become a powerful tool for studying these conditions

• allows researchers to simulate & explore perceptual differences in ways that were not possible in traditional research setting

VR for synaesthesia (Taylor et al, 2023)

• VR simulated synaesthetic cross-modal experiences like grapheme–colour associations.

• created synthetic experience for both non-synaesthesis

• p could navigate immersive 3D environments where they interacted w/objects and accompanying sensory experiences 

• Made perceptual cross overs shareable

  • enhancing understanding & self-expression for neurodivergent individuals

• reported that it was accurate in mirroring synaestheses brains 

Methods for VR & synaesthesia (Taylor et al, 2023)

• standard VR tools & controllers to allow participants to explore environments where visual & auditory inputs were cross-modally linked, simulating synaesthetic experience

• when P heard musical notes in the VE also saw vibrant colors corresponding to the pitch/tone of the sounds

Findings of VR & synaesthesia (Taylor et al, 2023)

• found that immersive VR was effective in both replicating the synaesthetic experience & in demonstrating to non-synaesthetes richness of these perceptual experiences

• Non-synaesthetic P gained greater empathy & understanding for the complexity of synaesthetic perception

• Synaesthetes given opportunity to visualize their multi-sensory world allowing for comparisons between their internal experiences & the simulated VR experience.

VR for Aphantasia (Li et al., 2023)

• explored how VR can be used to study the perceptual world of individuals w/aphantasia

• P w/aphantasia engaged in a drawing task using OpenBrush, a VR tool that allows for three-dimensional drawing

methods for VR & Aphantasia (Li et al., 2023)

• 4 P who were asked to complete drawing tasks within a virtual space using VR controllers & headsets

• asked to draw basic shapes, familiar objects, & personal memories, tasks typically associated w/mental imagery

• P provided verbal reflections on their experience, explaining how they approached the drawing tasks without aid of mental imagery

VR drawing tool study

• Participants (autistic and neurotypical) draw in 3D space while behavioural data and qualitative reports are recorded

• It exemplifies mixed methods—quantitative tracking plus qualitative experiential data.

Findings for VR & Aphantasia (Li et al., 2023)

• p w/aphantasia relied heavily on external references or structured guidelines to complete the tasks, as they lacked the ability to internally visualize the objects

• However, the immersive nature of VR allowed them to explore their drawings in ways that traditional 2D media could not.

  • e.g could “walk around” their drawings or view them from different angles, compensating for their inability to internally visualize the objects

• This interactive nature of VR provided a novel method to engage with their environment despite the lack of visual mental imagery.

What is the main promise of VR as a therapeutic and research tool?

• VR offers controlled, repeatable, &immersive environments

• complex phenomena (e.g. phobic stimuli, sensory overloads, social interactions) can be precisely manipulated, measured, and experienced.

How does VR benefit research into autism and neurodiversity?

• It bridges the gap between subjective experience & objective measurement by allowing direct manipulation of perceptual environments that are otherwise hard to study

• VR offers a way to create experiments that are not constrained by the limitations of the physical world

• allows researchers to study inner perceptual worlds of individuals w/these conditions in ways that were previously impossible

• VR offers a promising avenue for future research into neurodiversity and sensory processing

The Benefits of VR in Understanding Perceptual Differences

• VR provides a medium for illustrating subjective perceptual differences in a way that traditional research methods cannot

• allows for the visualization of abstract or subjective sensory experiences, VR makes invisible perceptual differences visible

Findings from the studies show what difference in processing?

• Autistic individuals often favour local (detail-focused) processing

• neurotypicals lean toward global (whole-focused) processing.

what is meant by neuro inclusive design in VR

• Designing systems that account for different sensory thresholds and preferences—offering adjustable brightness, contrast, pacing, and motion for comfort and accessibility.

issue of most VR systems

• They are built around neurotypical assumptions, ignoring sensory diversity and the need for flexible, user-controlled experiences