A VR Serious Game to Increase Empathy towards Students with Phonological Dyslexia

TL;DR

This paper addresses the challenge of fostering empathy toward students with phonological dyslexia in higher education by introducing a VR serious game. The game places players in a fantasy castle where they must read a recipe written in Britton's dyslexia font and add ingredients in the correct order within time limits, with compensatory aids provided after failures to simulate supportive strategies. Preliminary results from 32 non-dyslexic participants indicate that initial task difficulty induces frustration, which eases with extra time and aids, and survey data suggest a growth in empathy toward dyslexic individuals. The work demonstrates the potential of VR-based empathy-induction tools to promote inclusive attitudes and support strategies in higher education, with plans to scale up studies and extend to other dyslexia types and measures of empathy.

Abstract

Dyslexia is a neurodevelopmental disorder that is estimated to affect about 5-10% of the population. In particular, phonological dyslexia causes problems in connecting the sounds of words with their written forms. This results in difficulties such as slow reading speed, inaccurate reading, and difficulty decoding unfamiliar words. Moreover, dyslexia can also be a challenging and frustrating experience for students as they may feel misunderstood or stigmatized by their peers or educators. For these reasons, the use of compensatory tools and strategies is of crucial importance for dyslexic students to have the same opportunities as non-dyslexic ones. However, generally, people underestimate the problem and are not aware of the importance of support methodologies. In the light of this, the main purpose of this paper is to propose a virtual reality (VR) serious game through which teachers, students and, in general, non-dyslexic people could understand which are some of the issues of student with dyslexia and the fundamental utility of offering support to them. In the game, players must create a potion by following a recipe written in an alphabet that is specifically designed to replicate the reading difficulties experienced by individuals with dyslexia. The task must be solved first without any help and then by receiving supporting tools and strategies with the idea that the player can put himself in the place of the dyslexic person and understand the real need for support methodologies.

Figures (5)

• Figure 1: 'The word 'DYSLEXIA" using Britton's font britton.
• Figure 2: Flow diagram.
• Figure 3: Chambers from the virtual castle: initial room (a), Sam's Room (b) and potions laboratory (c).
• Figure 4: Main items.
• Figure 5: Survey results.