Counseling Students’ Experiences Viewing Virtual Reality Case Studies

Abstract

Virtual reality is a technological medium that provides a three-dimensional interactive environment in which individuals become immersed and, in some cases, manipulate the environment. This technology shows promise in applications with simulated educational experiences. Most of the applications discussed in the literature have involved medical training programs that attempted to use virtual reality for simulated patient–medical professional interactions. Research is lacking on the potential applications of virtual reality with counselor training. We applied virtual reality technology with counseling students at different points in their training programs and exposed them to virtual counseling situations. The participants in this phenomenological study indicated that simulated counseling situations felt more authentic than traditional role-plays and encouraged their use early in counselor training programs. Future applicability in counselor training, limitations, and research recommendations are discussed.