University of Pisa develops virtual reality tool for arachnophobia

Researchers at the University of Pisa have developed ‘Peter’, an open-source virtual reality tool designed to assist in the diagnosis and treatment of arachnophobia. The study, published in the journal ‘Communications Psychology’, was a collaborative effort between bioengineers from the Department of Information Engineering and psychologists from the Department of Surgical, Medical, Molecular, and Critical Area Pathology.

The tool uses a virtual reality headset to replicate a classic psychological test from the 1960s, placing users in a corridor with a large virtual spider. By measuring how closely participants approach the spider, as well as their walking speed and the time taken to complete the task, clinicians can precisely evaluate phobic avoidance behaviors.

According to researcher Sergio Frumento and bioengineering professor Alberto Greco, the system allows for the differentiation of avoidance behaviors into various subtypes. This capability is intended to help psychologists and clinicians better tailor specific therapies to individual patients. The software is open source and available for download online.