Men in the role of women exposed to piropos reported significantly higher levels of anger and revulsion. In 36 targets of pyropos, only one aggressively responded to virtual harassers.
36 Men, placed from the perspective of a woman who prepares to go out at night with the help of immersive technology.
The study of Chiara Lucifora And from his team at the University of Bologna made men with an average age of 23 incarnate a female avatar to prepare for an outlet at night. Then they were placed in a simulated environment of the metro station, to feel the emotional impact of the verbal harassment.
Half of the participants found male avatars that harassed them with phrases like “Hey, why don’t you show me a beautiful smile?” or “wow, are you real?” While the control group interacted with avatars that asked neutral questions, such as asking directions or the time – using Virtual Reality (RV).
Using an emotion classification scale, the study found that those exposed to piropos reported significantly higher levels of anger and repulsion compared to the control group.
These emotions argue the study researchers on Psychiv on April 15, are closely linked to moral disapproval and can act as catalysts for self -reflection and behavioral change.
Anger and revulsion are “potential motivating for self-reflection and corrective actions”, according to the investigators, cited by.
Interestingly, the experience caused very little verbal response from the group participants who heard piropos Only one man responded aggressively to the virtual harassers.
A participant believes he refrained from reacting because he was personifying a woman: “If he was a man, he would have answered.”
On the other hand, 9 participants in the control group interacted with the avatars.
Os levels of fear were similar in both groupswhat investigators speculate that it may be due to the inherently intimidating nature of being in a deserted meter station at night – an environment that reflects real -world contexts where many women suffer harassment.
Although all participants were pre-selected to ensure that they had no previous history of verbal harassment and the study did not follow attitude changes after the RV experience, researchers are optimistic.
“Virtual reality can be a good way to obtain this experience without provoking anything that can result in the real world,” says Colleen O’Leary, a former academics who studied verbal harassment for his doctorate.
