Assessing the Suitability of Virtual Reality Content for Stress Reduction among Firefighters

Abstract

As disaster sites diversify, the need for firefighting is steadily increasing. The stress and anxiety experienced by firefighters at work can cause lack of sleep and chronic fatigue. Firefighters are at risk of suffering from post-traumatic stress disorders due to the physical and mental injuries experienced at disaster sites; accordingly, fire departments within each province have set up mental and physical stability rooms to support primary recovery. However, due to lack of scientific effect verification and low utilization rate, these rooms are currently used for purposes other than their intended use. Virtual reality (VR) has recently been used as an intervention for stress reduction and treatment of depression. In order to examine the effectiveness of VR content, a mobile mental and physical stability room was constructed and operated on 124 firefighters. The results of the qualitative analysis showed an effect on stress, but the quantitative analysis revealed no significant difference.