Enhancing spatial memory capabilities using different encoding techniques within virtual reality environments: studies from across the lifespan

In a collaboration between the University of Waterloo and the University of Bordeaux, we used virtual reality (VR) to measure and compare memory capabilities in children, young healthy adults, and senior citizens. Our aim was to determine strategies that could help people better encode, and later recall, spatial routes. Way-finding is known to be negatively affected by the typical aging process. Formulating and understanding techniques that can maximize learning and subsequent memory for navigated routes can provide direct benefits to the aging population.

In our initial collaboration we measured the effectiveness of active versus passive navigation of routes. Virtual environments were created. During encoding, participants explored routes presented within city, park and mall virtual environments, and were later asked to re-trace their steps along their travelled route.

Critically, participants encoded half the virtual environments by passively viewing a guided tour along a pre-selected route, and half through active exploration with volitional control of their movements using hand-held devices. We calculated the percentage overlap in the path travelled as an indicator of spatial memory accuracy, and examined various measures indexing individual differences in cognitive approach and visuo- spatial processing abilities. Results showed that active navigation, compared to passive viewing during encoding, resulted in higher accuracy in spatial memory, with the magnitude of this memory enhancement being significantly larger in older than younger adults.

This successful initiative was innovative, yielding several conference presentations and a publication: 

Meade, M,E., Meade, J.G., Sauzeon, H., & Fernandes, M.A. (2019). Active navigation in virtual environments benefits older adults' spatial memory. Brain Sciences, 9(3), 47

We have now extended our experiments using more immersive technologies (HTC-Vive VR headset). Co-op students at the University of Waterloo and the University of Bordeaux designed and produced together a programming tool that can be shared by researchers to create and customize parameters within such VR experiments to explore the influence of other human factors such as motivation for exploration, inclusion of rewards, number of trials, and type of environment. Future extensions assessing memory in patients with Parkinson’s disease are planned (as soon as Covid-restrictions allow), to explore a neurochemical basis for the memory benefit conferred by active exploration.

Applying this lifelong developmental perspective in our collaboration, we have just finished a study with children using the same virtual environments. Here we explored the role of curiosity (recently shown to be synergistic to memory functioning) through the manipulation of the uncertainty of appearance of motivational objects (characters) at the time of decision making, when the child arrives at a crossroads and must choose a direction. We found that curiosity enhanced retention. We plan to conduct similar studies with elderly people to investigate whether the benefits of curiosity on spatial memory are generalized across the lifespan. 

We have successfully extended our collaboration to include graduate-level students. We recently received a Mitacs-Globalink award to support travel and training of a PhD candidate from University of Waterloo. She will travel to Bordeaux to learn and benefit from the technical expertise in VR programming offered at INRIA and Dr. Sauzeon, this Fall 2021.

"This collaboration has enabled us to weave together ideas, concepts, and approaches to research that are unique to France and Canada: Expertise in virtual reality at INRIA Bordeaux, and a long-standing research program in aging at Waterloo. The fruits of our labour can be seen not only in publications and conference presentations but in the cultivation of new trainees. They now have the technical training to conduct cutting-edge research, and can creatively design ecologically valid experiments to assess current theories about how route knowledge is best acquired and maintained?"

(Dr. M. Fernandes)

"The cooperation program has been particularly beneficial. First, from a human point of view, I met a researcher I knew by name through her publications, and the exchanges were fruitful thanks to Myra's energy and the common wonder of introducing new technologies in psychological research. We combined our expertise and succeeded in building experiments of great interest to both of us. Today, we have the confidence to continue this scientific collaboration".

(Dr. H. Sauzeon)