Schizophrenia Simulator

Abstract

Schizophrenia is a chronic mental disorder characterized by frequent psychosis and audiovisual hallucinations affecting 24 million people globally. Despite its prevalence, the varying degrees by which the symptoms present combined with misguided media portrayal make schizophrenia and related psychotic disorders one of the more poorly understood and stigmatized mental illness diagnoses. Because it is so misunderstood, it is hard for those with the illness to get help and be treated properly. The objective of this project was to develop a virtual reality simulation using Unity, aimed at replicating the symptoms and impacts of schizophrenia. The end result of this project is a VR simulation that simulates the symptoms of schizophrenia. It can be used with the Oculus Quest and is available through Dr. James Ivory. This project can be worked on by future students if they would like. This includes testing, more attributes to the simulation which could be more interactions or hallucinations, and keeping it updated with the Quest and Unity future versions.