With the aging population in China, the incidence of prostate cancer (PCa) is increasing year by year. However, due to the influence of cultural concepts and disease stigma, men in China have low awareness of health information and screening behavior. Due to the lack of interactivity and immersion, traditional health education forms are difficult to effectively improve the audience’s participation and learning effect. Virtual Reality (VR) technology improves users’ learning interest and knowledge acquisition ability through immersive multi-sensory experience, which provides new possibilities for health education and behavior change. In this study, a virtual clinic (V-Clinic) based on VR is designed and developed, which allows users to interact with medical experts through virtual avatars to enhance their attention to prostate health. In this study, 70 male participants aged 45–75 were given health education activities by using mixed research methods and combining quantitative and qualitative data analysis. Among them, the research results show that V-Clinic can effectively enhance men’s willingness to disclose health information and their interest in learning. The interview analysis shows that the subjects show positive emotional reaction in the process of virtual interaction and actively participate in the discussion of health topics in the virtual space. Quantitative analysis shows that V-Clinic significantly improves the knowledge level of PCa of participants. In addition, this anonymous virtual interaction mechanism reduces the psychological barriers that may be caused in the traditional medical treatment process and makes men more willing to receive health education and take preventive measures.

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Exploring the Impact of Virtual Avatars in V-Clinic on Male Health Information Disclosure and Information Acquisition

  • Hao Fang,
  • Xingyu Chen,
  • Seng Yue Wong,
  • Kenny S. L. Cheah

摘要

With the aging population in China, the incidence of prostate cancer (PCa) is increasing year by year. However, due to the influence of cultural concepts and disease stigma, men in China have low awareness of health information and screening behavior. Due to the lack of interactivity and immersion, traditional health education forms are difficult to effectively improve the audience’s participation and learning effect. Virtual Reality (VR) technology improves users’ learning interest and knowledge acquisition ability through immersive multi-sensory experience, which provides new possibilities for health education and behavior change. In this study, a virtual clinic (V-Clinic) based on VR is designed and developed, which allows users to interact with medical experts through virtual avatars to enhance their attention to prostate health. In this study, 70 male participants aged 45–75 were given health education activities by using mixed research methods and combining quantitative and qualitative data analysis. Among them, the research results show that V-Clinic can effectively enhance men’s willingness to disclose health information and their interest in learning. The interview analysis shows that the subjects show positive emotional reaction in the process of virtual interaction and actively participate in the discussion of health topics in the virtual space. Quantitative analysis shows that V-Clinic significantly improves the knowledge level of PCa of participants. In addition, this anonymous virtual interaction mechanism reduces the psychological barriers that may be caused in the traditional medical treatment process and makes men more willing to receive health education and take preventive measures.