VR and Script Training of PWA

Utilization of Immersive Virtual Reality in Computerized Script Training for People With Aphasia: A Feasibility Study

The goal of this intervention study is to investigate the effects of immersive virtual reality in rehabilitation of language and communication of individuals with post-stroke aphasia. The main research questions are: Is VR-based script training a feasible treatment to Cantonese-speaking PWA? Will VR-based script training, when compared to conventional script training, better enhance treatment outcomes in functional communication of PWA? Participants will be assessed before, in the middle of, immediately after treatment and 8-week post treatment in terms of their performance on: Accuracy and time for producing trained scripts. Accuracy and time for producing un-trained scripts Standardized aphasia test on severity of language impairment Standardized aphasia test on functional communication The participants will be randomly allocated to receive one of the treatment: Virtual reality-based computerized script training; or Computerized script training without virtual reality Researchers will compare the treatment outcomes of the two treatment conditions and see if treatment with virtual reality would better promote outcomes when compared to training without virtual reality.

functional communication, randomized study, script training, immersive virtual reality, aphasia intervention

The PWA will wear a head-mounted VR device (e.g., Metaverse Oculus Quest 2 or other commercially available devices) for 30 minutes, which intends to create an immersive environment for training. Scripts trained in the computerized script training program in a particular session will be practiced. Cinematic 360˚ photo-real scenarios of daily contexts such as a restaurant or a grocery store will be displayed in the device while a communication partner, e.g., a waiter in the restaurant or a shopkeeper of a grocery store will initiate the conversation by producing the corresponding part of the script. The PWA will be given time to respond. Upon the completion of PWA's respond, the next conversational turn will be initiated. The clinical assistant, who accompanies the PWA in the entire training session, will control the flow of the 360 ˚ videos.

The flow of training is identical to the VR condition, except that photos depicting the scenarios and pre-recorded conversational turns will be presented to the PWA on a computer screen with the same procedures mentioned in the VR condition.

No written cue will be provided while the PWA will produce the untrained scripts that share similar contexts with the trained scripts.

Inclusion Criteria: a stroke onset more than six months, with an Aphasia Quotient (AQ) below 96.4, as evaluated by the Cantonese version of Western Aphasia Battery (CAB; Yiu, 1992), premorbid fluent Cantonese speakers, aged between 30 and 80 years, no reported progressive neurogenic disorders such as dementia or Parkinson's disease, no motor speech disorders of moderate to severe level, and normal or corrected-to-normal vision and hearing functions Exclusion Criteria: concurrent participation in other aphasia treatment trials, and incompatibility with immersive VR exposure such as complains of nausea, headache, or other severe discomforts during trial use of a head-mounted device during screening.

The IPD, together with the study protocol, will be shared in an open-access data repository (e.g., Harvard Dataverse).