Percorrer por autor "Gamito, Pedro"

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    Adaptive Non-Immersive VR Environment for Eliciting Fear of Cockroaches : a Physiology-Driven Approach Combined with 3D-TV Exposure
    (International Journal of Psychological Research, 2020) Rosa, Pedro Joel; Luz, FIlipe Costa; Junior, Roberto; Oliveira, Jorge; Morais, Diogo; Gamito, Pedro; HEI-LAB (FCT) - Digital Laboratories for Environments and Human Interactions
    Non-immersive VR environments are related to the least interactive application of VR techniques, such that interaction with the VR environment can occur commonly by 3D-TV without full immersion into the environment. This study presents how 3D-TV exposure combined with physiology recording can elicit fear of cockroaches among individuals with different levels of fear. Thirty-six participants, set apart into three fear groups (low vs. moderate vs. high), were exposed to VR environment with cockroaches for 4 minutes while recording and using cardiac activity as input to the VR environment. Results revealed significant effects on self-report measures and heart rate between different fear groups. Moreover, participants with higher levels of fear were more likely to trigger cockroaches into the scenario due to their cardiac acceleration. Overall results suggest that our physiology-driven VR environment is valid for fear elicitation while having potential use in therapeutic domain.
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    Attentional orienting to biologically fear-relevant stimuli: data from eye tracking using the continual alternation flicker paradigm
    (Edições Universitárias Lusófonas, 2011) Rosa, Pedro Joel; Gamito, Pedro; Oliveira, Jorge; Morais, Diogo; Saraiva, Tomaz; Escola de Psicologia e Ciências da Vida
    Snakes are thought as fear-relevant stimuli (biologically prepared to be associated with fear) which can lead to an enhanced attentional capture when compared fear-irrelevant stimuli. Inherent limitations related to the key-press behaviour might be bypassed with the measurement of eye movements, since they are more closely related to attentional processes than reaction times. An eye tracking technique was combined with the flicker paradigm in two studies. A sample of university students was gathered. In both studies, an instruction to detect changes between the pair of scenes was given. Attentional orienting for the changing element in the scene was analyzed, as well the role of fear of snakes as a moderator variable. The results for both studies revealed a significant shorter time to first fixation for snake stimuli when compared to control stimuli. A facilitating effect of fear of snakes was also found for snakes, presenting the highly fear participants a shorter a time to first fixation for snake stimuli when compared to low-feared participants. The results are in line with current research that supports the advantage of snakes to grab attention due their evo-biological significance.
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    Cognitive Stimulation of Elderly Individuals with Instrumental Virtual Reality-Based Activities of Daily Life
    (2019-01-01) Gamito, Pedro; Oliveira, Jorge; Morais, Diogo; Coelho, Cátia; Santos, Nuno; Alves, Catarina; Galamba, Ana; Soeiro, Miguel; Brito, Rodrigo; HEI-LAB (FCT) - Digital Laboratories for Environments and Human Interactions
    As the demographic structure in western societies ages, the prevalence and impact of cognitive decline rises. Thus, new solutions to tackle this problem are required. The use of Information and Communication Tech- nologies (ICT)-based cognitive exercises has emerged in the last few decades, though with inconsistent results. Hence, we conducted a pre-post treatment study to further investigate this approach. We designed a set of virtual reality exercises that mimic activities of daily living by which the patient can train different cognitive domains. Twenty-five participants, ages 65–85, underwent 12 training sessions between the pre-treatment and post-treatment assessments. Significant increases were seen between the two assessments for some of the neuropsychological measures: visual memory, attention, and cognitive flexibility. Results also suggest that participants with lower baseline cognitive performance levels improved most after these sessions.
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    Computerized cognitive training using virtual reality on everyday life activities for patients recovering from stroke
    (2020-04-07) Oliveira, Jorge; Gamito, Pedro; Lopes, Beatriz; Silva, Ana Rute Tavares; Galhordas, João; Pereira, Eduarda; Ramos, Elisabete; Silva, Ana Paula Lopes da; Jorge, Áurea; Fantasia, António; HEI-LAB (FCT) - Digital Laboratories for Environments and Human Interactions
    Recent studies argue that the use of virtual reality tasks depicting activities daily living may be an effective means for cognitive rehabilitation. The aim of this study was to test an ecologically oriented approach in virtual reality resembling the demands of everyday life activities for cognitive rehabilitation following stroke. The sample comprised 30 sub-acute stroke patients recovering from stroke in a rehabilitation hospital. They were assessed in a single-arm pre-post intervention study on global cognition, executive functions, memory and attention abilities. The intervention consisted of virtual reality in a multidomain cognitive training approach depicting everyday life tasks (preparing food, choosing clothes, shopping, etc.). Improvements were found in the assessed cognitive domains at 6 to 10 post-treatment sessions. In-depth analysis through reliable change scores has suggested larger treatment effects on global cognition. Overall results suggest that the use of virtual reality-based exercises on everyday life activities may be a useful cognitive rehabilitation approach to provide short-term gains in cognition following stroke.
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    Ethical decision-making training goes virtual
    (Edições Universitárias Lusófonas, 2021) Oliveira, Miguel; Gamito, Pedro; Dias, Ana Rita Conde; Souto, Maria Teresa Soares; Dias, Fábio André Sousa; Alves de Sousa, João; Ricou, Miguel; Marina, Silvia; HEI-LAB (FCT) - Digital Laboratories for Environments and Human Interactions
    We present the VREthics application that enables immersive training in ethical decision making of internship psychologist. The development of this app is supported on theoretical information regarding best practices for ethics decisions in Psychology and technological issues concerning the system design. Eleven internship psychologists tested the VREthics and were questioned about their subjective assessment of the app, the VR training experience and its impact on the learning process. They reported a positive appreciation of both the VR training experience (43.52%) and of the impact on their training (31.98%). The most referenced characteristic is related to the realism and interactivity of the case, allowing them a sense of presence. Results are accordingly to the scarce literature and suggest that the VR training can be an important resource for practical learning, providing an educational context close to the real, interactive and engaging context. Therefore, the use of technological tools, more specifically VR, should be integrated in the psychologists skills´ training of the utmost relevance to practice, namely in ethical decision-making. The next steps will be to implement VREthics in the initial training plan for internship psychologists at the Portuguese Psychologists Association, being a differentiating tool in their training that allows a more practical and interactive level of access to fundamental theoretical concepts.
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    GBL for Psychological Intervention Related Skills: What Challenges? What Paths?
    (Dechema e.V., 2021) Sousa, Carla Patrícia Gonçalves e; Fonseca, Micaela; Mansuklal, Shivani Atul; Carvalho, Jéssica; Silva, Diogo; Neves, Pedro Pinto; Luz, Filipe Costa; Salvador, Ágata; Costa, Leonor Pereira da; Oliveira, Jorge; Gamito, Pedro; HEI-LAB (FCT) - Digital Laboratories for Environments and Human Interactions
    In recent research, games have become an important reference with regards to learning skills with certain characteristics, as well as in promoting contemporary literacies. Games have similarly become highly relevant in the promotion of psychological well-being and mental health. Even considering this role in promoting learning in general, soft skills, motivation, cooperation, empathy, among others, in the field of psychological intervention, the potential of games has been much more applied to patients than to the psychologists and their professional development. The present study aims at mapping the intersection between psychological intervention related skills learning and game-based pedagogical strategies. For such purpose, a Systematic Literature Review was conducted through some of the most relevant scientific databases. The obtained sample was further selected following the PRISMA guidelines with screening and eligibility processes based on inclusion criteria, defined considering the research’s aim. Non-peer reviewed research and studies aimed at other pedagogical approaches, such as gamification, were excluded from the final sample. Papers were categorized, coded, and analysed through statistical procedures and content analysis techniques. The results contextualize games as effective and feasible tools in the professional development of psychologists and psychology graduates, simultaneously highlighting the scarcity of resources in this field and the need for more experimental and quasi experimental approaches to foster evidence-based pedagogical choices. Keywords: GBL, Psychology, Psychology Learning, Psychology Students, Mental Health Professionals, Therapists
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    Grabbing attention while reading website pages: the influence of verbal emotional cues in advertising
    (Edições Universitárias Lusófonas, 2011) Ferreira, Paulo Jorge Quaresma; Rita, Paulo; Morais, Diogo; Rosa, Pedro Joel; Oliveira, Jorge; Gamito, Pedro; Santos, Nuno; Soares, Fábio; Sottomayor, Catarina; Escola de Psicologia e Ciências da Vida
    The increasing use of the World Wide Web has promised a huge advertising platform for marketers. Investment in online advertising is growing and is expected to overcome traditional media. However, recent studies have reported that users avoid looking at advertising displayed on the World Wide Web. This study aimed at examining the impact of verbal emotional cues (negative/neutral/positive) to capture attention on website’s advertising areas through an eye tracker system. The results revealed significant statistical differences between fixations to negative, positive words and neutral words. Significant differences between the number of fixations and recognition of the target words were found only for the negative valence words. We conclude that negative emotional words could play a major role on user attention to advertising.
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    Hemispheric asymmetries in recognition memory for negative and neutral words
    (Edições Universitárias Lusófonas, 2011) Oliveira, Jorge; Gamito, Pedro; Perea, Maria; Ladera, Valentina; Morais, Diogo; Rosa, Pedro Joel; Saraiva, Tomaz; Escola de Psicologia e Ciências da Vida
    Federmeier and Benjamin (2005) have suggested that semantic encoding for verbal information in the right hemisphere can be more effective when memory demands are higher. However, other studies (Kanske & Kotz, 2007) also suggest that visual word recognition differ in function of emotional valence. In this context, the present study was designed to evaluate the effects of retention level upon recognition memory processes for negative and neutral words. Sample consisted of 15 right-handed undergraduate portuguese students with normal or corrected to normal vision. Portuguese concrete negative and neutral words were selected in accordance to known linguistic capabilities of the right hemisphere. The participants were submitted to a visual half-field word presentation using a continuous recognition memory paradigm. Eye movements were continuously monitored with a Tobii T60 eye-tracker that showed no significant differences in fixations to negative and neutral words. Reaction times in word recognition suggest an overall advantage of negative words in comparison to the neutral words. Further analysis showed faster responses for negative words than for neutral words when were recognised at longer retention intervals for left-hemisphere encoding. Electrophysiological data through event related potentials revealed larger P2 amplitude over centro-posterior electrode sites for words studied in the left hemifield suggesting a priming effect for right-hemisphere encoding. Overall data suggest different hemispheric memory strategies for the semantic encoding of negative and neutral words.
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    Is Pupil Activity Associated With the Strength of Memory Signal for Words in a Continuous Recognition Memory Paradigm?
    (Edições Universitárias Lusófonas, 2021-11-23) Oliveira, Jorge; Fernandes, Marta; Rosa, Pedro Joel; Gamito, Pedro; HEI-LAB (FCT) - Digital Laboratories for Environments and Human Interactions
    Research on pupillometry provides an increasing evidence for associations between pupil activity and memory processing. The most consistent finding is related to an increase in pupil size for old items compared with novel items, suggesting that pupil activity is associated with the strength of memory signal. However, the time course of these changes is not completely known, specifically, when items are presented in a running recognition task maximizing interference by requiring the recognition of the most recent items from a sequence of old/new items. The sample comprised 42 healthy participants who performed a visual word recognition task under varying conditions of retention interval. Recognition responses were evaluated using behavioral variables for discrimination accuracy, reaction time, and confidence in recognition decisions. Pupil activity was recorded continuously during the entire experiment. The results suggest a decrease in recognition performance with increasing study-test retention interval. Pupil size decreased across retention intervals, while pupil old/new effects were found only for words recognized at the shortest retention interval. Pupillary responses consisted of a pronounced early pupil constriction at retrieval under longer study-test lags corresponding to weaker memory signals. However, the pupil size was also sensitive to the subjective feeling of familiarity as shown by pupil dilation to false alarms (new items judged as old). These results suggest that the pupil size is related not only to the strength of memory signal but also to subjective familiarity decisions in a continuous recognition memory paradigm.
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    Mental health and victimization: an exploratory study in prisons of Cape Verde
    (2019-10-09) Dias, Ana Rita Conde; Dias, Jorge; Souto, Maria Teresa Soares; Gamito, Pedro; HEI-LAB (FCT) - Digital Laboratories for Environments and Human Interactions
    Background: There is insufficient information available regarding the psychopathological characteristics of the inmate population in low-middle-income countries as Cape Verde. Objective: This study aimed to determine the prevalence of mental disorders in a sample of Cape Verdean inmates and explore its’ relation with victimization in the prison context Participants and methods: This cross-sectional study was carried out in 5 prisons of Cape Verde. 402 subjects were included in stratified convenience sample and assessed with Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI) and a sociodemographic questionnaire. Data was analyzed using SPSS 25 software applying descriptive and inferential statistical measures. Results: Inmate ́s mean age was 31, 16 years, mainly men (96%), single (87,6%) from Cape Verde (90,8%) with a basic level of education. 62.9% reported substance use problems. According to the psychopathological dimensions included in BSI, paranoid ideation, obsessive-compulsive and depressive symptoms stand out either in the sample or in the 2 sub-samples. Symptomatology was significantly higher among victims namely in interpersonal sensitivity), anxiety and hostility. The increasing reoccurrence of victimization in the past 12 months is associated with an increase in the severity of symptoms. Conclusion: Victimization and mental health problems should be identified as early as possible to enable joint and combined intervention, given the negative impact of psychopathological manifestations on the reintegration of prisoners in society affecting the reintegration of prisoners into society.
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    Virtual Reality Cognitive Training Among Individuals With Alcohol Use Disorder Undergoing Residential Treatment
    (Edições Universitárias Lusófonas, 2021-01-01) Gamito, Pedro; Oliveira, Jorge; Matias, Marcelo Alexandre Cabaça; Cunha, Elsa Alexandra Pinto Ribeiro da; Brito, Rodrigo; Lopes, Paulo Jorge Ferreira; Deus, Alberto; HEI-LAB (FCT) - Digital Laboratories for Environments and Human Interactions
    Background: Alcoholusedisorder(AUD)hasbeenassociatedwithdiversephysicalandmentalmorbidities.Amongthemain consequences of chronic and excessive alcohol use are cognitive and executive deficits. Some of these deficits may be reversed in specific cognitive and executive domains with behavioral approaches consisting of cognitive training. The advent of computer-based interventions may leverage these improvements, but randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of digital interactive-based interventions are still scarce. Objective: The aim of this study is to explore whether a cognitive training approach using VR exercises based on activities of daily living is feasible for improving the cognitive function of patients with AUD undergoing residential treatment, as well as to estimate the effect size for this intervention to power future definitive RCTs. Methods: This study consisted of a two-arm pilot RCT with a sample of 36 individuals recovering from AUD in a therapeutic community; experimental group participants received a therapist-guided, VR-based cognitive training intervention combined with treatment as usual, and control group participants received treatment as usual without cognitive training. A comprehensive neuropsychological battery of tests was used both at pre- and postassessments, including measurement of global cognition, executive functions, attention, visual memory, and cognitive flexibility. Results: In order to control for potential effects of global cognition and executive functions at baseline, these domains were controlled for in the statistical analysis for each individual outcome. Results indicate intervention effects on attention in two out of five outcomes and on cognitive flexibility in two out of six outcomes, with effect sizes in significant comparisons being larger for attention than for cognitive flexibility. Patient retention in cognitive training was high, in line with previous studies. Conclusions: Overall, the data suggest that VR-based cognitive training results in specific contributions to improving attention ability and cognitive flexibility of patients recovering from AUD. Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04505345; https://clinicaltrials.gov/show/NCT04505345
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    Virtual reality-based cognitive stimulation on people with mild to moderate dementia due to alzheimer’s disease : a randomized controlled trial
    (MDPI, 2021) Oliveira, Jorge; Gamito, Pedro; Souto, Maria Teresa Soares; Dias, Ana Rita Conde; Ferreira, Maria; Corotnean, Tatiana; Fernandes, Adriano; Silva, Henrique; Neto, Teresa; HEI-LAB (FCT) - Digital Laboratories for Environments and Human Interactions
    The use of ecologically oriented approaches with virtual reality (VR) depicting instrumen-tal activities of daily living (IADL) is a promising approach for intervention on acquired brain inju-ries. However, results of such an approach on dementia caused by Alzheimer’s disease (AD) are still lacking. This research reports on a pilot randomized controlled trial that aims to explore the effect of cognitive stimulation reproducing several IADL in VR on people with mild to moderate dementia caused by AD. Patients are being recruited from residential care homes of Santa Casa da Misericórdia da Amadora (SCMA) which is a relevant non-profit social and healthcare provider in Portugal. This intervention lasts 2 months with a total of 10 sessions (2 sessions/week). Neuropsy-chological assessment is carried out at baseline and follow-up using established neuropsychological instruments for assessing memory, attention and executive functions. The sample consisted of 17 patients of both genders randomly assigned to the experimental and control groups. The prelimi-nary results show an improvement in the overall cognitive function in the experimental group, which suggest this approach to be effective for neurocognitive stimulation for older adults with dementia, contributing to maintain cognitive function in AD.
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    Virtual Reality-Based Cognitive Stimulation to Improve Cognitive Functioning in Community Elderly
    (2020-03) Gamito, Pedro; Oliveira, Jorge; Alves, Catarina; Santos, Nuno; Coelho, Cátia; Brito, Rodrigo; HEI-LAB (FCT) - Digital Laboratories for Environments and Human Interactions
    The advantages of using naturalistic virtual reality (VR) environments based on everyday life tasks for cog- nitive intervention in the elderly are not yet well understood. The literature suggests that the similarity of such exercises with real life activities may improve generalizability by extending the transfer of gains of training to everyday living. This study aimed to investigate the gains associated with this ecologically-oriented virtual reality cognitive stimulation (VR-CS) versus standard cognitive stimulation in the elderly. Forty-three healthy older adults were divided into two groups: an experimental group underwent a VR-based cognitive stimulation and an active control group underwent a paper-and-pencil cognitive stimulation. The outcomes assessed at the pre-treatment and posttreatment assessment consisted in well-established tests for cognitive and executive functioning, depression, subjective well-being, and functionality. The results showed positive outcomes on dimensions of general cognition, executive functioning, attention, and visual memory in the group that un- derwent VR-CS. Improvements in executive functioning in this group was supported by consistent evidence of increases in attention abilities but little evidence of increases in memory abilities. Both effects may have contributed to improvements in general cognition. Further studies are needed to test whether these effects may extend to well-being and functionality in cognitively impaired older adults.
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    VR-based assessment and intervention of cognitive functioning after stroke
    (2020) Gamito, Pedro; Souto, Maria Teresa Soares; Dias, Ana Rita Conde; Salvador, Ágata; Galhordas, João; Oliveira, Jorge; HEI-LAB (FCT) - Digital Laboratories for Environments and Human Interactions
    Worldwide, stroke affects one out of every six individuals, being associated with physical and cognitive impairments, and leaving a striking footprint on individuals, their families and society. Assessment of acquired deficits and rehabilitation of lost and compromised functions is based typically on exercises that may not replicate the demands of everyday life activities lacking ecological validity. These tests fail at predicting daily functioning and their similarity with daily life activities is far from being sound. Assessing and training cognitive functions under an ecologically oriented approach, i.e. using exercises that replicate instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) seems to be the suitable strategy to follow. Virtual Reality (VR) worlds have been used to simulate IADL for assessment and rehabilitation of acquired cognitive deficits since the late 1990’s. This chapter reports and debates existing studies that support the use of VR in this context. When it comes down to veridicality and verisimilitude, evidences illustrate the opportunity of adopting this strategy that outperforms traditional paper and pencil exercises. A glance through the perspective of a therapist, that has adopted VR for cognitive rehabilitation in patients with stroke is also debated.