Using virtual reality as part of civility training feat. Robin Rosenberg

I was an early-ish adopter of virtual reality (VR). When the HTC Vive came out in 2016 I ended up buying one sheerly out of curiosity. The graphics were pixelated and didn’t look that realistic...but it’s so immersive that it felt real. So real that I may or may not have punched air when a ghost popped out while playing a Paranormal Activity VR game. Luckily that event was not captured on video.

So what in the world does all that have to do with this podcast?

On this episode I got to chat with Robin Rosenberg, CEO and Founder of Live In Their World, about how VR is an effective tool to help with civility training and DE&I. It allows people to truly live in someone else’s shoes for a brief moment and see how a scenario may play out. For example, men can experience what it’s like to be a woman as a man stands over their desk speaking to them. It helps drive home the feelings someone might experience to help decrease bias and increase respectful engagement.

We also chat about how VR is just a tool and that ultimately it comes down to building a habit of taking the time to be self-aware enough to realize how your words and deeds impact others, and then adjusting your behavior accordingly.