An evidence-informed intervention under development
Immersive Change draws on an emerging body of research into virtual embodiment, perspective-taking, emotion recognition and supervised behavioural rehearsal.
Existing studies provide a credible rationale for developing and evaluating the program. They do not establish that the specific Immersive Change intervention will reduce domestic and family violence, produce sustained behavioural change or reduce recidivism.
The proposed MVP and pilot are therefore designed to test safety, clinical relevance, usability, engagement and early behavioural indicators before broader adoption is considered.
2022 – Rapid evidence review: VR and immersive storytelling with men
A 2022 rapid evidence review by Pascoe, Wells and Esina examined the use of virtual reality and immersive storytelling to engage men in violence prevention, gender equality and related areas.
The review found that VR interventions show promise for increasing empathy, influencing attitudes and beliefs, supporting perspective-taking and providing opportunities to practise prosocial behaviours. It also identified immersive VR as potentially useful for engaging men around issues that may otherwise generate defensiveness.
Relevance to Immersive Change
The review supports the use of immersive perspective-taking, behavioural rehearsal and practitioner-supported reflection as components of a broader intervention rather than relying on VR as a stand-alone experience. It also identifies the potential value of using VR to practise prosocial responses in realistic but controlled situations.
Important limitation
The review concludes that the evidence base remains emerging. Most studies focused on attitudes, empathy or other intermediate outcomes, with limited evidence on sustained behaviour change or longer-term effects. The review was also primarily concerned with primary prevention rather than interventions with men already using violence.
Pascoe, L., Wells, L. & Esina, E. (2022), Using Virtual Reality and Immersive Storytelling to Engage and Mobilize Men for Violence Prevention and the Advancement of Gender Equality, Diversity, Justice, and Inclusion: Rapid Evidence Review, Shift: The Project to End Domestic Violence, University of Calgary.
2023 – Engaging men through online and digital approaches
Michael Flood examines the use of online and digital media to engage men and boys in violence prevention, including the opportunities and challenges associated with technology-based approaches and immersive forms of engagement.
The chapter highlights the potential for digital approaches to extend participation, create different forms of engagement and support violence-prevention work with men, while also recognising the importance of intervention design, facilitation and the broader context in which technology is used.
Relevance to Immersive Change
This work helps inform how Immersive Change approaches participant engagement. The technology is not intended to operate as a stand-alone intervention; the immersive experience sits within structured practitioner-led preparation, reflection and behavioural work.
Important limitation
The chapter provides a broader framework for engaging men through digital approaches rather than evidence that virtual reality itself produces sustained behavioural change among men who use domestic and family violence.
https://xyonline.net/content/engaging-men-online-using-online-media-violence-prevention-men-and-boys
2022 – Practical use of VR in IPV perpetrator rehabilitation
Barnes, Sanchez-Vives and Johnston examined the practical use of immersive virtual reality in the rehabilitation of intimate partner violence perpetrators, including its potential to support perspective-taking, emotion recognition and therapeutic engagement.
The paper considers how immersive VR may be incorporated into perpetrator intervention and rehabilitation settings as a complement to established therapeutic and behavioural approaches, rather than as a stand-alone treatment.
Relevance to Immersive Change
This work is particularly relevant to Immersive Change because it moves beyond demonstrating that virtual embodiment can produce measurable responses and considers how immersive VR might actually be used within perpetrator rehabilitation practice.
It supports the rationale for combining immersive experiences with practitioner-led preparation, reflection and behavioural work, while reinforcing the importance of embedding the technology within a broader intervention framework.
Important limitation
The paper does not establish that VR produces sustained reductions in intimate partner violence or recidivism. It provides a rationale and practical framework for further development and evaluation rather than evidence of long-term behavioural effectiveness.
Barnes, N., Sanchez-Vives, M. V. & Johnston, T. (2022), On the Practical Use of Immersive Virtual Reality for Rehabilitation of Intimate Partner Violence Perpetrators in Prison, Frontiers in Psychology, 13, 787483.https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychology/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.787483/full?
2018 – Victim-perspective embodiment
A 2018 study involved men with histories of intimate partner violence experiencing a domestic abuse scenario from the first-person perspective of a female victim.
Following the experience, the offender group showed improved recognition of fearful facial expressions. This finding suggests that immersive embodiment may influence an emotional-recognition capability relevant to perspective-taking and behavioural intervention.
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-018-19987-7?utm_source
Relevance to Immersive Change
This research supports the rationale for testing an intimate-partner-perspective pilot designed to help participants recognise fear, distress, escalation and the impact of their behaviour.
Important limitation
The study did not establish sustained behaviour change, reduced violence or reduced recidivism.
2023 – Child-perspective embodiment
Related research has examined men experiencing domestic conflict from the embodied perspective of a child.
The study identified measurable emotional, physiological and emotion-recognition responses, providing preliminary support for the use of a child’s perspective within carefully controlled intervention and assessment settings.
https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/08862605221106130?utm_source
Relevance to Immersive Change
This research directly informs the proposed child-perspective MVP, which will test whether the experience is clinically credible, safe and useful for structured practitioner-led reflection.
Important limitation
The findings do not demonstrate improved parenting behaviour, sustained accountability or reduced harm to children.
2020 – Neural response to virtual embodiment
Neuroimaging research has found that first-person embodiment during a virtual domestic violence experience influenced activity in cortical networks associated with bodily self-representation and the processing of the space around the body.
https://www.eneuro.org/content/7/3/ENEURO.0263-19.2019?utm_source
Relevance to Immersive Change
This supports careful attention to perspective, proximity, body position and scenario design. It also reinforces that the participant’s embodied viewpoint is not merely a visual device; it can affect how an experience is processed.
Important limitation
Neural engagement is not evidence of empathy, accountability or real-world behavioural change.
2020 – Supervised VR behavioural rehearsal
Research in forensic psychiatric settings has also examined the use of supervised virtual reality to practise responses to interpersonal triggers and aggression-related situations.
A multicentre randomised controlled trial of Virtual Reality Aggression Prevention Therapy assessed VR-supported practice involving social situations, triggers and aggression-regulation skills.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32708637/
Relevance to Immersive Change
This broader research supports the use of controlled immersive scenarios for practising emotional regulation, pausing, alternative responses and behavioural rehearsal under practitioner supervision.
Important limitation
The research was not specific to domestic and family violence, and findings from forensic psychiatric settings cannot automatically be applied to Men’s Behaviour Change Programs or community practice.
How the research informs the program
The emerging evidence has informed the proposed use of:
- a child-perspective MVP;
- an intimate-partner-perspective pilot;
- clinician-led preparation and debriefing;
- controlled rather than open-ended scenarios;
- repeated practice and approved variations;
- measures relating to safety, engagement, emotion recognition, escalation awareness and clinical usefulness; and
- independent evaluation before broader rollout.
Our evidence position
Existing research supports the rationale for development and pilot testing. It does not establish that Immersive Change will reduce violence, sustain behaviour change or reduce recidivism.
Immersive Change should therefore be understood as an evidence-informed intervention under development, not a clinically validated treatment.
Key references
- Seinfeld, S. et al. (2018), Offenders become the victim in virtual reality: impact of changing perspective in domestic violence, Scientific Reports.
- De Borst, A.W. et al. (2020), First-Person Virtual Embodiment Modulates the Cortical Network that Encodes the Bodily Self and Its Surrounding Space during the Experience of Domestic Violence, eNeuro.
- Seinfeld, S. et al. (2023), Domestic violence from a child perspective: Impact of an immersive virtual reality experience on men with a history of intimate partner violent behaviour, Journal of Interpersonal Violence.
- Klein Tuente, S. et al. (2020), Virtual Reality Aggression Prevention Therapy versus Waiting List Control for Forensic Psychiatric Inpatients, Journal of Clinical Medicine.