Emotionally Evocative Environments for Training

This paper describes a project currently in progress at the University of Southern California’s Institute for Creative Technologies (ICT). Much of the research at ICT involves developing better graphics, sound and artificial intelligence to be used in creating the next generation of training tools for the United States Army. Our project focuses on the use of emotional responses as an enhancement for training. Research indicates that an emotional connection is a strong factor in how and what we remember. In addition, real world situations often evoke surprising and significant emotional reactions that soldiers must deal with. Few current immersive training scenarios, however, focus on the emotional state of the trainee, limiting training scenarios to basic objective elements. The Sensory Environments Evaluation (SEE) Project at ICT is investigating the potential of emotionally compelling environments for more effective training. We do this by skillfully combining the sensory inputs available in virtual environments. Our current efforts concentrate on sight and sound; smell will be included as scent delivery methods improve. Evaluation studies are planned to determine the effectiveness of the techniques we are developing.