Using Fully Immersive Virtual Reality to Teach Safe Pedestrian Skills to Autistic Children

This study examines the efficacy of fully immersive virtual reality (VR) to teach pedestrian safety skills to children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Four autistic children who met inclusion criteria related to tolerance of VR equipment, absence of problem behavior, and limited baseline skills participated. Using VR with an omnidirectional treadmill, participants were taught safe pedestrian crossing across three traffic conditions: clear crossings, busy crossings, and crossings where a vehicle came to a stop. Through a concurrent multiple probe design, pedestrian skills taught in VR were assessed for generalization across both virtual environments (VEs) and natural environments (NEs). All participants acquired the target response within the virtual teaching environments, and three of four participants demonstrated generalization across VE and NE, supporting the efficacy of immersive VR for promoting safety and independence. The findings highlight VR's potential as a low-risk and customizable teaching environment capable of promoting real-world skill generalization.