ProReal in mental health
Full disclosure here; I suffer from mental illness. I have since I was 13, and it's something I have had to live with every day since. I see no reason not to divulge that information, as I personally don't believe it in any way reflects who I am, the job I do, or the company I keep. It's ones of those rare illnesses that will never be completely slain, but I've made peace with it, and what worries me is that there are so many young people today (as many as 1 in 10) who are destined to go through the same rigmarole as me: Take pill, see condescending therapist, discover said pill is about as effective as a bandage on a tumour, rinse and repeat until “Something works.”
We live in a more enlightened time than we did back in the stone age that was the 1990's though, and thanks to companies such as the Manchester-based Corporation Pop consultancy, young people of the near future suffering through the grim uncertainty of mental illness could be more well equipped to combat it. What I'm referring to here is “ProReal,” a piece of 3D virtual reality software in which players create avatars they can use in order to visualise their real-life relationships. This affords them a safe, identifiable environment in which to identify and work through problems they might have in reality, and then take what they've learned and apply it to their actual lives.
“ProReal” is a piece of 3D virtual reality software in which players create avatars they can use in order to visualise their real-life relationships
The software allows a coach, therapist or counsellor to work with their clients to create a visual representation of a situation they might have difficulty with in every-day life. Whilst currently only in early development, the digital design agency hope to enhance the landscape to include heavily symbolic features and additional props and interactive elements, all of which are designed to be used as therapeutic tools for the treatment of people with mental health issues. Eventually, a user management system will also be implemented, which will allow therapists to keep clinical records of their patients interactions in the game, as well as a function allowing patients to use the software at home.
An example of ProReal being used in a therapy session
The program, titled “Avatar Therapy for Young People,” has just been awarded £970,000 by the Small Business Research Initiative Healthcare, a branch of the NHS that helps small companies with innovative ideas fund their research and ideas. ProReal chief executive Andrew Jackson, said the contract enables them “To continue the valuable work working with Corporation Pop,” a company they love working with “Because of their virtual world expertise.”
The program, titled “Avatar Therapy for Young People,” has just been awarded £970,000 by the Small Business Research Initiative Healthcare
It might all sound like frilly hogwash on paper, but I have had first-hand experience with similar (though far less advanced) programs and they really do help. Corporation Pop first got involved with ProReal back in 2012 after they had been contacted by a business coach who had seen the VR game Second Life used as a means to help people suffering through mental illness, when used in collaboration with a therapist. According to managing director Dom Raban, the coach “Wanted to take the coaching methodology into the virtual environment,” so they built a prototype featuring genderless, featureless avatars, which users could modify to represent their own emotional states. Raban said they idea was not “To convey too many preconceptions with the avatar.” He admits “It’s quite an unrealistic avatar,” but that is the point. It's not based on yourself, or who you want to be, but “On principles of how you feel about others.”
Raban continues that the software also includes a feature in which “You start building a scene from your own perspective, but can also inhabit any other avatar you create and see things from their perspective too,” which could help those who struggle to empathise with other people. The prop box of visual metaphors users can generate include a literal ticking time bomb, a brick wall, a mine field, and even an elephant (not subtle). Raban says scenarios are “Based on individual interpretation,” and are clichéd because they need to be. He said “The 3D landscape is based on fantasy,” because they didn’t want to create something that related “Too directly to someone’s real world experience.”
The software is currently being used as a business-coaching tool, but there will be trials undertaken with young children this year by CP's partner Sutherland Innovation Labs
The software is currently being used as a business-coaching tool, but there will be trials undertaken with young children this year by CP's partner Sutherland Innovation Labs, which (if all goes well) should set it on course for an early 2016 release. A tablet version is also in the works, as Raban believes the gaming environment created by a tablet is “One that young people are very familiar with.” He believes that “Mental health is a massive problem in the UK and one that goes largely untreated,” and whilst he admits “There is no single silver bullet” to solve the problem, he genuinely thinks “ProReal has the potential to add to a set of existing therapies, and provide an easy-to-access and powerful tool for young people.” Until I see the software in action I couldn't possibly comment on its effectiveness, though I will commend Raban and his team for attempting to tackle such a misunderstood illness in such an unconventional way and on such a grand scale.
Benjamin Hiorns is a freelance writer and struggling musician from Kidderminster in the UK. He figures he might well be a little too old for ProReal (more of a GTA fan these days), but will certainly recommend it to his friends with kids.
