Papers by Francesco Vincelli
L'uso della Realt\ue0 Virtuale nel trattamento dell'attacco di panico
A VR-based multicomponent treatment for panic disorders with agoraphobia
Studies in health technology and informatics, 2001
Agoraphobia consists of a group of fears of public places such as going outside, using public tra... more Agoraphobia consists of a group of fears of public places such as going outside, using public transportation and being in public places, which cause serious interference in daily life. Many studies demonstrated the effectiveness of a multicomponent cognitive-behavioral treatment strategy for panic disorder with agoraphobia. The traditional protocol involves a mixture of cognitive and behavioral techniques which are intended to help patients identify and modify their dysfunctional anxiety-related thoughts, beliefs and behavior. Emphasis is placed on reversing the maintaining factors identified in the cognitive and behavioral patterns. We use Virtual Reality (VR) to support Panic Disorder treatment. The preliminary treatment protocol for Panic Disorder and Agoraphobia, named Experiential-Cognitive Therapy (ECT), was developed at the Applied Technology for Neuro-Psychology Lab of Istituto Auxologico Italiano, Verbania, Italy, in cooperation with the Psychology Department of the Catholi...
Acceptance and Commitment therapy as a framework for a protocol for smoking cessation with comorbidity of general anxiety disorder. A case study and follow-up
This case study described the conceptualization and the cognitive-behavioral treatment planning w... more This case study described the conceptualization and the cognitive-behavioral treatment planning within the model of the Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) for a 63-year-old patient affected by a lung carcinoid with a generalised anxiety disorder associated with nicotine addiction. The treatment proposed different behavioral techniques based on acceptance of experiences, the application of the concept of cognitive defusion and an initial training of mindfulness (Hayes, 2003; Allen et al., 2006) with the intention to improve patient’s adaptive functioning and his quality of life in line with his desired values (Masuda et al., 2004). The case study also highlights the most important aspects of the therapeutic relationship, which grew progressively following the cognitive-behavioral principles of the Compassion Therapy (Gilbert, 2009). At the end of the treatment, the patient reported a significant reduction of the main symptoms with an important improvement in term of mood, and ph...
Clinical Psychology & Psychotherapy, 2000
This paper describes the characteristics and preliminary evaluation of the Experiential Cognitive... more This paper describes the characteristics and preliminary evaluation of the Experiential Cognitive Therapy (Experiential CT), a VR based treatment to be used in obesity and binge-eating disorders' assessment and treatment. Experiential CT is a relatively short-term, integrated, patient oriented approach that focuses on individual discovery. Main characteristic of this approach is the use of Virtual Reality, a new technology that allows the user to be immersed in a computergenerated virtual world. Two preliminary clinical trials were carried out on female patients: 25 patients suffering from binge-eating disorders were included in the first study and 18 obese in the second one. At the end of the in-patient treatments, the patients of both samples modified significantly their bodily awareness. This modification was associated to a reduction in problematic eating and social behaviors. No subjects experienced simulation sickness. Reality Treatment of Obesity and Binge Eating Disorders 2 VIRTUAL REALITY BASED EXPERIENTIAL COGNITIVE TREATMENT OF OBESITY AND BINGE-EATING DISORDERS 1.
The great potential offered by VR to clinical psychologists derives prevalently from the central ... more The great potential offered by VR to clinical psychologists derives prevalently from the central role, in psychotherapy, occupied by the imagination and by memory. These two elements, which are fundamental in our life, present absolute and relative limits to the individual potential. Using VR as an advanced imaginal system-an experience that is able to reduce the gap existing between imagination and reality-it is possible to transcend these limits. In this sense VR can improve the efficacy of a psychological therapy for its capability of reducing the distinction between the computer's reality and the conventional reality. Two are the core characteristics of this synthetic imaginal experience: the perceptual illusion of nonmediation and the possibility of building and sharing a common ground. In this sense, experiencing presence in a clinical VE-such as a shared virtual hospital-requires more than reproduction of the physical features of external reality. It requires the creation and sharing of the cultural web that makes meaningful-and therefore visible-both people and objects populating the environment.
This Thesis presents a low-fidelity approach to model and analyze the decay phase for space objec... more This Thesis presents a low-fidelity approach to model and analyze the decay phase for space objects (space debris) originally orbiting in Low Earth Orbits (LEO). This approach is used to better characterize some of the involved uncertainties, which are propagated through the propagation of the orbit in order to characterize the re-entry time. In particular, the main source of uncertainty lies in the prediction of solar and geomagnetic indices which is performed through time series analysis techniques. The indices influence the Total Mass Density (TMD) in the Thermosphere, i.e. the layer of the Earth atmosphere from about 90 [km] of altitude to between 500 and 1000 [km]. During the decay phase, a low-fidelity 3 degree of freedom (DoF) propagator is used and the only perturbation force considered is the aerodynamic drag, which is the main one in LEO. Alongside the propagator, the Thermosphere model NRLMSISE00 is adopted in order to calculate TMD with some uncertainty depending on the ...
The communication between therapist and patient in virtual reality: the role of mediation played by computer technology
Studies in Health Technology and Informatics, 2002
Even if the number of reported application is constantly increasing, understanding how to use imm... more Even if the number of reported application is constantly increasing, understanding how to use immersive virtual reality (VR) to support clinical practice presents a substantial challenge for the designers and users of this emerging technology. These opposite faces are resulting from the peculiar characteristics of VR. In fact, VR is not simply a particular collection of technological hardware, but can be considered as a new medium defined in terms of its effect on both basic and major psychological processes. In particular, the essence of VR is the inclusive relationship between the participant and the virtual environment, where direct experience of the immersive environment constitutes communication. Starting from this vision, the chapter tries to outline a theoretical framework for supporting the development and tuning of clinical oriented VR systems.
The communication between therapist and patient in virtual reality: the role of mediation played by computer technology
Studies in Health Technology and Informatics, 2002
Even if the number of reported application is constantly increasing, understanding how to use imm... more Even if the number of reported application is constantly increasing, understanding how to use immersive virtual reality (VR) to support clinical practice presents a substantial challenge for the designers and users of this emerging technology. These opposite faces are resulting from the peculiar characteristics of VR. In fact, VR is not simply a particular collection of technological hardware, but can be considered as a new medium defined in terms of its effect on both basic and major psychological processes. In particular, the essence of VR is the inclusive relationship between the participant and the virtual environment, where direct experience of the immersive environment constitutes communication. Starting from this vision, the chapter tries to outline a theoretical framework for supporting the development and tuning of clinical oriented VR systems.
The great potential offered by VR to clinical psychologists derives prevalently from the central ... more The great potential offered by VR to clinical psychologists derives prevalently from the central role, in psychotherapy, occupied by the imagination and by memory. These two elements, which are fundamental in our life, present absolute and relative limits to the individual potential. Using VR as an advanced imaginal system - an experience that is able to reduce the gap existing between imagination and reality - it is possible to transcend these limits.
The great potential offered by VR to clinical psychologists derives prevalently from the central ... more The great potential offered by VR to clinical psychologists derives prevalently from the central role, in psychotherapy, occupied by the imagination and by memory. These two elements, which are fundamental in our life, present absolute and relative limits to the individual potential. Using VR as an advanced imaginal system - an experience that is able to reduce the gap existing between imagination and reality - it is possible to transcend these limits.
L'uso della Realtà Virtuale nel trattamento dell'attacco di panico
(2003). L'uso della Realtà Virtuale nel trattamento dell'attacco di pan... more (2003). L'uso della Realtà Virtuale nel trattamento dell'attacco di panico. ... (2003). L'uso della Realtà Virtuale nel trattamento dell'attacco di panico. ... Tutti i documenti archiviati in PubliCatt sono protetti da copyright. Tutti i diritti riservati. ... Copyright ©2012 - Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore - Tutti i diritti riservati. ICT Support, development & maintenance are provided by the AePIC team @ CILEA. Powered on DSpace Software.
The great potential offered by Virtual Reality (VR) derives prevalently from the central role, in... more The great potential offered by Virtual Reality (VR) derives prevalently from the central role, in psychotherapy, occupied by the imagination and by memory. These two elements, which are fundamental in the life of every one of us, present absolute and relative limits to individual potential. Thanks to virtual experiences, it is possible to transcend these limits. The recreated world may at times be more vivid and real than the one that most subjects are able to describe through their own imagination and through their own memory. This chapter focuses on imaginative techniques to find new ways of applications in therapy. In particular the chapter analyses in which way VR can be used to improve the efficacy of current techniques. VR produces a change with respect to the traditional relationship between client and therapist. The new configuration of this relationship is based on the awareness of being more skilled in the difficult operations of recovery of past experiences, through the memory, and of foreseeing of future experiences, through the imagination. At the same time, the subject undergoing treatment perceives the advantage of being able to recreate and use a real experiential world within the walls of the clinical office of his own therapist.
The great potential offered by VR to clinical psychologists derives prevalently from the central ... more The great potential offered by VR to clinical psychologists derives prevalently from the central role, in psychotherapy, occupied by the imagination and by memory. These two elements, which are fundamental in our life, present absolute and relative limits to the individual potential. Using VR as an advanced imaginal system an experience that is able to reduce the gap existing between imagination and reality it is possible to transcend these limits. In this sense VR can improve the efficacy of a psychological therapy for its capability of reducing the distinction between the computer’s reality and the conventional reality. Two are the core characteristics of this synthetic imaginal experience: the perceptual illusion of nonmediation and the possibility of building and sharing a common ground. In this sense, experiencing presence in a clinical VE such as a shared virtual hospital requires more than reproduction of the physical features of external reality. It requires the creation and...
VREPAR Projects: The use of virtual environments in psycho-neuro-physiological assessment and rehabilitation
Due, in large part, to the significant advances in PC hardware that have been made over the last ... more Due, in large part, to the significant advances in PC hardware that have been made over the last 3 years, PC-based virtual environments are approaching reality. Virtual Reality Environments for Psychoneurophysiological Assessment and Rehabilitation (VREPAR) are two European Community funded projects (Telematics for health-HC 1053/HC 1055, http:// www.psicologia.net) that are trying to develop a PC-based virtual reality system (PC-VRS) for the medical market that can be marketed at a price that is accessible to its possible endusers (hospitals, universities, and research centres) and that would have the modular, connectability, and interoperability characteristics that the existing systems lack. In particular, the projects are developing three hardware/software modules for the application of the PCVRS in psycho-neuro-physiological assessment and rehabilitation. The chosen development areas are eating disorders (bulimia, anorexia, and obesity), movement disorders (Parkinson's disease and torsion dystonia) and stroke disorders (unilateral neglect and hemiparesis). This article describes the rationale of the modules and the preliminary results obtained.
Virtual reality and imaginative techniques in clinical psychology
Studies in health technology and informatics, 1998
The great potential offered by Virtual Reality (VR) derives prevalently from the central role, in... more The great potential offered by Virtual Reality (VR) derives prevalently from the central role, in psychotherapy, occupied by the imagination and by memory. These two elements, which are fundamental in the life of every one of us, present absolute and relative limits to individual potential. Thanks to virtual experiences, it is possible to transcend these limits. The re-created world may at times be more vivid and real than the one that most subjects are able to describe through their own imagination and through their own memory. This chapter focuses on imaginative techniques to find new ways of applications in therapy. In particular the chapter analyses in which way VR can be used to improve the efficacy of current techniques. VR produces a change with respect to the traditional relationship between client and therapist. The new configuration of this relationship is based on the awareness of being more skilled in the difficult operations of recovery of past experiences, through the ...
From Imagination to Virtual Reality: The Future of Clinical Psychology
CyberPsychology & Behavior, 1999
The possible role of virtual reality (VR) in clinical psychology derives prevalently from the cen... more The possible role of virtual reality (VR) in clinical psychology derives prevalently from the central role occupied by the imagination and by memory in psychotherapy. These two elements, which are fundamental in the life of everyone, present absolute and relative limits to individual potential. Thanks to virtual experiences, it is possible to transcend these limits. The re-created world may be more vivid and real at times than the one that most subjects are able to describe through their own imagination and through their own memory. This article focuses on imaginative techniques to find new ways of applications in therapy. In particular, the way VR can be used to improve the efficacy of current techniques is explored. VR produces a change with respect to the traditional relationship between client and therapist. The new configuration of this relationship is based on the awareness of being more skilled in the difficult operations of recovery of past experiences through the memory and of foreseeing future experiences through the imagination. At the same time, subjects undergoing treatment perceive the advantage of being able to recreate and use a real experiential world within the confines of their therapists's clinical offices.
La realidad virtual como medio para mejorar la terapia cognitivo-conductual del trastorno de pánico
Las patologias donde la ansiedad juega un papel importante son hoy una de las entidades clinicas ... more Las patologias donde la ansiedad juega un papel importante son hoy una de las entidades clinicas con mas ripercusiones sociales y individuales en nuestro contexto cultural. La eficacia de la terapia cognitivo-conductual en el tratamiento del trastorno de pánico se esta probando en el mundo cientifico. Nuevas pistas de investigación estan buscando proceduras de tratamiento mas eficaces (con alta percentual de exito) y eficientes (exitos terapeuticos en pocas sesiones y con un costo limitado), sobre todo en el campo de la ...
Virtual reality based experiential cognitive treatment of anorexia nervosa
Journal of behavior …, Jan 1, 1999
The treatment of a 22-year old female university student diagnosed with Anorexia Nervosa is descr... more The treatment of a 22-year old female university student diagnosed with Anorexia Nervosa is described. In the study the Experiential Cognitive Therapy (ECT) was used: a relatively short-term, integrated, patient oriented approach that focuses on individual discovery. Main characteristic of this approach is the use of Virtual Reality, a new technology that allows the user to be immersed in a computer-generated virtual world. At the end of the in-patient treatment, the subject increased her bodily awareness joined to a reduction in her level of body dissatisfaction. Moreover, the patient presented a high degree of motivation to change. The results are discussed with regard to Vitousek, Watson and Wilson (1998, Clinical Psychology Review, 18(4), 391-420) proposal of using the Socratic Method to face denial and resistance of anorectic patients.
CyberPsychology & Behavior, 2000
... effects associated with traditional strategies of care, we introduce two elements: the cost-b... more ... effects associated with traditional strategies of care, we introduce two elements: the cost-benefitanalysis in psy ... The cost of the application, however, is minimal because the therapy is ad-ministered in the ... 3. Classification and role attribution of dys-functional thought individuated ...
The communication between therapist and patient in virtual reality: the role of mediation played by computer technology
Studies in Health Technology and Informatics, Feb 1, 2002
Even if the number of reported application is constantly increasing, understanding how to use imm... more Even if the number of reported application is constantly increasing, understanding how to use immersive virtual reality (VR) to support clinical practice presents a substantial challenge for the designers and users of this emerging technology. These opposite faces are resulting from the peculiar characteristics of VR. In fact, VR is not simply a particular collection of technological hardware, but can be considered as a new medium defined in terms of its effect on both basic and major psychological processes. In particular, the essence of VR is the inclusive relationship between the participant and the virtual environment, where direct experience of the immersive environment constitutes communication. Starting from this vision, the chapter tries to outline a theoretical framework for supporting the development and tuning of clinical oriented VR systems.
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Papers by Francesco Vincelli