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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Technology
Nicola Davis Science correspondent

VR role-play therapy helps people with agoraphobia, finds study

Shop scene with realistic virtual characters.
Participants were encouraged to make eye contact with the virtual characters in some scenarios. Photograph: OCAP

It’s a sunny day on a city street as a green bus pulls up by the kerb. Onboard, a handful of passengers sit stony-faced as you step up to present your pass. But you cannot see your body – only a floating pair of blue hands.

It might sound like a bizarre dream, but the scenario is part of a virtual reality (VR) system designed to help people with agoraphobia – those for whom certain environments, situations and interactions can cause intense fear and distress.

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