A Whole New Virtual/ Augmented World
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Faculty member’s vision becomes reality in nationally ranked VAR Lab f it weren’t right in front of your eyes, literally and figuratively, it might be hard to see how quickly one good idea can bloom into a world of opportunity. What started as an effort by Dr. Chris Shelton, assistant professor of clinical psychology, to reduce barriers to accessing mental health support with virtual technology has expanded into a nationally ranked, and very busy, Virtual/Augmented Realty (VAR) Lab at Behrend. Animation Career Review, an online resource for those aspiring to careers in digital and graphic arts as well as game design and animation, recently placed the virtual and augmented reality programs of Penn State Behrend, offered through the VAR Lab and the Digital Media, Arts, and Technology major, among the top ten on the East Coast. This placed Behrend’s programs among powerhouses like the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, New York University, Rochester Institute of Design, Cornell University, and Harvard University. Among the programs of all the public schools and colleges in the United States, Behrend’s VAR Lab ranked fourteenth. It’s a welcome, if somewhat astonishing, honor, said Shelton, who leads the VAR Lab and has been shepherding growing activity there over the past three years with the help of considerable grant funding, student research talent, and partnering faculty expertise. Current projects range from smartphone apps to virtual tours of Wintergreen Gorge to immersive history projects for the Hagen History Center in Erie.
PSYCHOLOGICAL ROOTS
Why would a psychologist be involved in virtual and augmented reality, an area many people might associate with engineering? In fact, Shelton explained, some of the earliest work in VR was done by psychology researchers who were trying to help treat combat veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. “They used it to do exposure therapy with veterans,” Shelton
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said. “More recently, though, we are seeing a lot of research suggesting that this type of technology can be quite effective at helping to address a wide variety of mental health issues, including overall wellness and stress management.” Shelton’s personal interest in virtual technology stems from a desire to overcome obstacles to mental health treatment. “I call them the 4 As: accessibility, availability, affordability, and acceptability,” he said. “Digital mechanisms can help address these issues.” Case in point: Serene is a mental health resource and mindfulness smartphone app developed by a team of Behrend students. The team launched the app during the pandemic to help users track their emotions and suggest activities and resources that could help with overall wellness. Following the successful launch of Serene, work is now underway, in partnership with the college’s James R. Meehl Innovation Commons ideation lab, on a new app targeting stress and depression in college students.
