# Guidelines for the Development of Immersive Virtual Reality Software for Cognitive Neuroscience and Neuropsychology: The Development of Virtual Reality Everyday Assessment Lab (VR-EAL)

**Authors:** Panagiotis Kourtesis, Danai Korre, Simona Collina, Leonidas A. A. Doumas, Sarah E. MacPherson  
**arXiv:** [2101.08166](https://arxiv.org/abs/2101.08166)  
**Date:** 2021-01-20  
**Summary page:** https://www.summarizepaper.com/en/arxiv-id/2101.08166v1/

## Key points

- VR head-mounted displays are effective research tools for neuropsychological testing
- Guidelines have been developed to address challenges of VR induced symptoms and effects (VRISE) and lack of skills in VR software development
- The Virtual Reality Everyday Assessment Lab (VR-EAL) is the first neuropsychological battery in immersive VR
- Techniques for evaluating cognitive functions within a realistic storyline are discussed, as well as various assets in Unity, software development kits, and other software to help cognitive scientists overcome challenges pertinent to VRISE and quality control.
- The study implements the VR neuroscience questionnaire (VRNQ) to evaluate three versions of VR-EAL according to necessary criteria for research purposes.
- 25 participants aged between 20 and 45 years with 12-16 years of full-time education participated in this pilot study.
- The final version of VR-EAL achieved high scores on every sub-score of the VRNQ while its improved graphics substantially increased user experience and almost eradicated VRISE during a 60-minute session.
- This study provides valuable insights into how cognitive scientists can develop effective research and clinical software that addresses challenges related to VRISE and quality control using immersive VR as a neuropsychological battery for assessing cognitive functions within a realistic storyline.
- Detailed procedures for participant recruitment and evaluation are also provided.

## Summary

Virtual reality (VR) head-mounted displays (HMD) have been identified as effective research tools for addressing the problem of ecological validity in neuropsychological testing. To address the challenges of VR induced symptoms and effects (VRISE) and a lack of skills in VR software development, this study offers guidelines for the development of VR software in cognitive neuroscience and neuropsychology. It describes and discusses the stages of the development of Virtual Reality Everyday Assessment Lab (VR-EAL), which is the first neuropsychological battery in immersive VR. Techniques for evaluating cognitive functions within a realistic storyline are discussed, as well as various assets in Unity, software development kits, and other software to help cognitive scientists overcome challenges pertinent to VRISE and quality control. The study also implements the VR neuroscience questionnaire (VRNQ; Kourtesis et al., 2019b) to evaluate three versions of VR-EAL according to necessary criteria for research purposes. Twenty-five participants aged between 20 and 45 years with 12-16 years of full-time education participated in this pilot study. The final version of VR-EAL achieved high scores on every sub-score of the VRNQ while its improved graphics substantially increased user experience and almost eradicated VRISE during a 60-minute session. This study provides valuable insights into how cognitive scientists can develop effective research and clinical software that addresses challenges related to VRISE and quality control using immersive VR as a neuropsychological battery for assessing cognitive functions within a realistic storyline. Detailed procedures for participant recruitment and evaluation are also provided.