Learn Social
Emotional Skills Effectively, Efficiently
and Affordably
Our Product
Levels and Focus Areas:
01
Emotion Recognition
In this level the user is asking another person for help. The person they will ask will be portraying an emotion. The user will then be asked to identify the emotion that was being shown followed by the correct answer and an explanation.
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02
Prosocial Skills
In this level the user is prompted to watch a social interaction take place. The user is then asked whether the actions that the individuals in the scene were showing was correct or incorrect. Then the answer to the question will be explained.
03
Social-Emotional Skils
The user will be placed in a social situation and then be prompted to interact with another individual. The user will have to select what behavior would be correct in the situation based on the emotions being portrayed by the other individual and what they learned about prosocial skills.
Flow Chart:
Screen Recordings:
Iteration 1
Level 1:
Behind DevMind VR
OUR STORY
Coming from a low funded school, I realized that individuals with developmental disabilities could not always get the resources they need. This is because in person treatments that are viewed as the most effective are expensive and cost an upwards of $47,000 on average. Small towns and rural locations additionally struggle to have resources creating hardships for many families. We wanted to create an aid that is effective, affordable, and accessible so anyone with a developmental disability can get the resources they need
WHY
Individuals with developmental disabilities have deficits in social emotional skills which is the ability to recognize and emotion in a social situation and respond correctly. Not having social-emotional skills can limit individuals with developmental disabilities as they may feel dependent on others. Lacking social-emotional skills can also have potential dangers when an individual needs to get help in a social setting.
WHAT MAKES US DIFFERENT
Technological intervention methods to teach social-emotional skills is growing, but some methods are not effective. Some examples of this are mobile and desktop games, which are ineffective because they are not immersive. To enhance immersion, our product uses 360-degree virtual reality, which makes the situations immersive. Some other solutions also use animations which are not realistic, so the users have difficulties applying the skills to their real life. Our aid has a video-based interface, which makes the interface realistic.
OUR VISION
Our hope is to integrate our product into schools and learning centers with students with developmental disabilities as well as providing families with a resource to help their loved one be safer and more independent.
Research
Founder and CEO, Anika Mistry, is an accomplished science researcher in the behavioral science and computer science field. Anika recently competed in the 2020 science fair circuit winning "Best in Fair" (1st overall), 1st in the Senior Division, and the Yale Science and Engineering Award in Computer Science at the regional fair. She is a Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF) finalist and qualified for the California Science and Engineering Fair, which was cancelled due to COVID-19.
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