Social Robot & Human-Robot Interaction

Selective Mutism (SM) is a psychiatric childhood anxiety disorder characterized by a lack of speech in settings where speaking is socially expected despite the presence of speech in other situations. This study evaluates the use of Virtual reality exposure therapy (VRET), which is a method of psychotherapy that uses virtual scenarios to treat patients with SM. The VRET system is specially programmed with artificially created scenes to give the child a simulated experience. [read more...]