The immersive virtual memory task: Assessing object-location memory in neurological patients using immersive virtual reality

Abstract

Memory for object locations in proximity is an essential aspect of everyday activities and has high clinical relevance. Immersive Virtual Reality (VR) has the potential to bridge the gap between the experimental control of laboratory conditions and reliable predictions of functional abilities. We developed the immersive Virtual Memory Task (imVMT), a neuropsychological assessment tool for spatial memory that combines gesture-based natural hand interaction and a head-mounted display. Our aim was to investigate the imVMT task characteristics, to validate the imVMT regarding the underlying cognitive processes, and to evaluate its applicability and feasibility in the clinical context in a sample of thirty-five patients with various neurological disorders and functional deficits. We further aimed to assess object-location memory in a small-scale virtual environment. Our results show that task difficulty can be efficiently manipulated by increasing the number of objects to memorize and rotation angle against the encoding perspective. We demonstrate construct validity as our primary outcome measure was significantly related to spatial memory performance in conventional neuropsychological tests. The imVMT was highly feasible and received high ratings for usability. The imVMT represents an ecologically relevant and valid VR task for assessing object-location memory in a wide range of neurological patients. Trial registration: German Clinical Trials Register identifier: DRKS00024005.