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That experience sounds like 'virtual embodiment'. Researchers are using it for a bunch of different things as it can be quite powerful. So powerful, in fact,

That experience sounds like 'virtual embodiment'. Researchers are using it for a bunch of different things as it can be quite powerful. So powerful, in fact, that some of the researchers have been advocating for limiting access to the technology and establishing a 'code of ethics' around its use. Basically, how you see the world is tied to an internal mental model of your own body that establishes where each limb is, how big you are in relation to your environment, etc... and virtual embodiment seems able to alter that very easily. With lasting effects.

netsharc 7y ago
One man ported Grand Theft Auto V to VR, and he got really freaked out when he shot a man in-game...
- otakucode 7y ago
  Virtual embodiment is a bit different from regular VR and much more intense. Sure, I imagine there will be people that get freaked out in regular VR since fake violence is literally what people think real violence actually IS now. The fact that the unreal depiction doesn't resemble actual violence in any way except on a vague conceptual basis is totally ignored by most people. Luckily, though, things like PTSD are rooted in direct physiological effects rather than cognitive ones, so it won't cause too many problems in the long run. Virtual embodiment requires a separate camera in addition to the VR. What they do is have you don a VR helmet, and in that you see the environment around you - but actually it's the camera mounted on your face. Then, however, the perspective begins to move. Without you moving yourself, the view you see moves, turns around, and you can see yourself. At this point, you basically feel disembodied. But then the perspective is slowly moved, with your real body still in view, into a 'virtual avatar' of some sort. From that point, everything you see is from that avatars perspective, and as far as your brain is concerned, that IS your body. They have used this to transfer the perspective of large, imposing men into the virtual bodies of small women, then they have large, imposing male VR characters come in and begin shouting at them. As they look down, they see their thin arms, their short stature, their lack of muscle, etc, and they get legitimately scared of the huge male figure confronting them. Tests afterward showed that the men who underwent this experiment (men who had previously been abusive to their partners) showed a marked improvement in their ability to recognize fear in the face of others, an impairment common to most abusers. It's a fascinating topic, and one of the leading researchers using it, a Dr. Metzinger, has proposed that a VR Code of Ethics be considered. I don't personally think we really have the ability to competently form such a code since we're pretty early on and don't really know how things will affect people, but it is an issue that's being considered. Any time potential censorship of things like this is proposed, I always consider the case of actors in films and plays. They're already far more "immersed" and doing things more "interactively" than any technology is likely to enable us to do. They use real guns (loaded with blanks), shoot them at real people, see blood packs explode, see those real people they personally know crumple to the floor or wail in pain, etc... and they're fine.

netsharc 7y ago

One man ported Grand Theft Auto V to VR, and he got really freaked out when he shot a man in-game...

otakucode 7y ago
Virtual embodiment is a bit different from regular VR and much more intense. Sure, I imagine there will be people that get freaked out in regular VR since fake violence is literally what people think real violence actually IS now. The fact that the unreal depiction doesn't resemble actual violence in any way except on a vague conceptual basis is totally ignored by most people. Luckily, though, things like PTSD are rooted in direct physiological effects rather than cognitive ones, so it won't cause too many problems in the long run. Virtual embodiment requires a separate camera in addition to the VR. What they do is have you don a VR helmet, and in that you see the environment around you - but actually it's the camera mounted on your face. Then, however, the perspective begins to move. Without you moving yourself, the view you see moves, turns around, and you can see yourself. At this point, you basically feel disembodied. But then the perspective is slowly moved, with your real body still in view, into a 'virtual avatar' of some sort. From that point, everything you see is from that avatars perspective, and as far as your brain is concerned, that IS your body. They have used this to transfer the perspective of large, imposing men into the virtual bodies of small women, then they have large, imposing male VR characters come in and begin shouting at them. As they look down, they see their thin arms, their short stature, their lack of muscle, etc, and they get legitimately scared of the huge male figure confronting them. Tests afterward showed that the men who underwent this experiment (men who had previously been abusive to their partners) showed a marked improvement in their ability to recognize fear in the face of others, an impairment common to most abusers. It's a fascinating topic, and one of the leading researchers using it, a Dr. Metzinger, has proposed that a VR Code of Ethics be considered. I don't personally think we really have the ability to competently form such a code since we're pretty early on and don't really know how things will affect people, but it is an issue that's being considered. Any time potential censorship of things like this is proposed, I always consider the case of actors in films and plays. They're already far more "immersed" and doing things more "interactively" than any technology is likely to enable us to do. They use real guns (loaded with blanks), shoot them at real people, see blood packs explode, see those real people they personally know crumple to the floor or wail in pain, etc... and they're fine.