Citation

de-Juan-Ripoll C, Soler-Domínguez JL, Chicchi Giglioli IA, Contero M, Alcañiz M. Cyberpsychol. Behav. Soc. Netw. 2020; ePub(ePub): ePub.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2020, Mary Ann Liebert Publishers)

DOI

10.1089/cyber.2019.0761

PMID

32845725

Abstract

Risk taking (RT) is an essential component in decision-making process that depicts the propensity to make risky decisions. RT assessment has traditionally focused on self-report questionnaires. These classical tools have shown clear distance from real-life responses. Behavioral tasks assess human behavior with more fidelity, but still show some limitations related to transferability. A way to overcome these constraints is to take advantage from virtual reality (VR), to recreate real-simulated situations that might arise from performance-based assessments, supporting RT research. This article presents results of a pilot study in which 41 individuals explored a gamified VR environment: the Spheres & Shield Maze Task (SSMT). By eliciting implicit behavioral measures, we found relationships between scores obtained in the SSMT and self-reported risk-related constructs, as engagement in risky behaviors and marijuana consumption. We conclude that decontextualized Virtual Reality Serious Games are appropriate to assess RT, since they could be used as a cross-disciplinary tool to assess individuals' capabilities under the stealth assessment paradigm.

Language: en

Keywords

risk taking; virtual reality; evaluation methodologies; implicit measures; serious games