360° VR Videos Boost Well-being In Older Adults

KEYWORDS - Older Adults | Senior Care | 360° Video | Immersive Virtual Reality | Well-Being | Emotions | Apathy | Cognitive Impairment

Reviewed Study: Fully Immersive Virtual Reality Using 360° Videos to Manage Well-Being in Older Adults: A Scoping Review

INTRODUCTION

Well-being tends to decline with age, driven by factors such as social isolation, physical decline, and loss of independence, and pandemic-related confinement made this worse for many older people. Virtual reality has been proposed as a promising way to counter these effects, but earlier reviews mixed very different setups, from flat screens to projection rooms to head-mounted displays. Far less attention has been paid to fully immersive 360° video, which shows real places rather than computer-generated environments and can be produced and tailored to people's needs comparatively quickly. This review is the first in-depth look at 360° video interventions for the well-being of older adults, and it also examines cybersickness and how older adults feel about the technology.

METHODS

The authors followed the PRISMA extension for scoping reviews and searched four databases (PubMed, Cochrane, Scopus, and CINAHL) for studies published until April 2022. Studies were included if they used immersive 360° videos or photos delivered through a VR headset, involved older adults with a mean age of 65 or above, and measured psychosocial outcomes such as depression, anxiety, apathy, or loneliness. From 2,265 identified records, 10 studies met the criteria, together covering 524 participants with mean ages between 68 and 87 in community settings and residential aged care. Six studies included participants with cognitive impairment. Interventions used smartphone-based or standalone headsets, and the content consisted mainly of natural scenes, travel destinations, and familiar places, with five studies personalising the material. Sessions lasted 3 to 20 minutes, delivered individually or in groups, with participants seated for comfort and safety.

RESULTS

Emotions were the most widely studied outcome and showed the clearest pattern. Most studies reported improved positive emotions and reduced negative ones, and two controlled studies found a greater effect for VR than for the control condition. Apathy decreased in three studies, in one of them significantly more than in an active control group. Anxiety improved in three of the four studies that measured it, while findings for depression, loneliness, and quality of life were mixed. One study reported improved social engagement. Notably, five of the six studies that included participants with cognitive impairment observed benefits in this group as well. Safety results were reassuring. Seven studies measured cybersickness, and only 18 of the 524 participants reported mild, temporary side effects, with severe symptoms in a single study affecting three participants. In interviews, participants described the sessions as enjoyable and realistic, often triggering pleasant memories and a wish to share the experience, though some asked for more varied content.

CONCLUSION

For care providers and activity coordinators, the practical message is encouraging. 360° video sessions in VR headsets are feasible in both community and residential aged care, they are safe, and older adults enjoy them, with benefits appearing after only a few short sessions. The strongest evidence concerns emotions and apathy. Content selection matters. Natural settings such as woods, parks, and beaches were repeatedly linked to positive feelings, and familiar places that trigger reminiscence appear to strengthen the effect. The authors call for larger randomised trials and encourage partnerships with industry to develop personalised 360° content. Until then, this review positions 360° video as an emerging and promising therapeutic tool for supporting psychosocial well-being in older adults.

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Citation: Restout, J., Bernache-Assollant, I., Morizio, C., Boujut, A., Angelini, L., Tchalla, A., & Perrochon, A. (2023). Fully Immersive Virtual Reality Using 360° Videos to Manage Well-Being in Older Adults: A Scoping Review. Journal of the American Medical Directors Association, 24(4), 564-572. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jamda.2022.12.026

Conflict of Interest Declaration: Atmosphaeres and its founders Eric & Susanne Fassbender were not involved in this review or in any of the included studies. This article is an independent summary of the published research.

Disclaimer: This summary was created with the help of AI writing tools. The content may therefore not always be entirely accurate. We assume no responsibility for any false or incorrect information provided in this article. It is essential to independently verify the content in the original publication which is linked in the citation section above.

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