Harnessing Virtual Reality and Simulated Role Plays for Enhanced Engagement and Academic Success in Online Social Work Education

Purpose: Social work education is changing rapidly with the incorporation of online platforms, and COVID-19 has propelled this movement even further. Recent technological advancements offer unprecedented opportunities to make higher education more relevant, applied, and engaging for students. A critical difficulty with traditional approaches like paper-based client vignettes and role-plays is that students may not feel engaged with the content or receive authentic experiences compared with working with live clients. More immersive settings such as simulation labs are costly, difficult to access, and do not provide students with repeated practice. As research and application for addressing core competencies continues, computer-based simulations may bridge traditional approaches and their need to incorporate live clients. Research supports using simulation and virtual platforms as alternative means for addressing core generalist and clinical practice competencies, including those for anti-racism. This study aims to explore the impact of virtual reality technology on student experience and academic success in the synchronous and asynchronous online social work classrooms. Method: The current study used mixed-effects multilevel regression, examining the relationship between MSW students' self-efficacy score and two predictors while accounting for the nested structure of the data. The model included fixed effects for pre-test/post-test conditions (baseline vs. after) and groups (control vs. intervention), with observations (N = 158), grouped by student ID across 105 levels (groups), ranging from 1 to 4 observations per group. Results: The fixed effect of the pre/post condition was not statistically significant (β = 0.165; 95% CI [-0.254, 0.585], p = .440), indicating that the pre and post-self-efficacy scores did not differ when controlling for the intervention group. Importantly, the group (control vs. intervention) emerged as a significant predictor, suggesting that the intervention group has significantly increased self-efficacy from their baseline (β = 0.433; 95% CI [0.021, 0.844], p = .039). Discussion: This preliminary study shows that one promising solution to the conundrum of how to appropriately engage students in experiential learning in the online classroom is to integrate virtual reality technologies and simulated role plays. These technologies allow students to apply and practice their newly learned skills through simulated role-plays of situations the students will encounter in the field. It will enable them to rehearse the learned skills in a safe and controlled space in the virtual classroom or metaverse before direct work with vulnerable clients. As these simulations imitate the real-world clinical environment in a low-risk context, they replicate clinical situations' critical components safely for students to test their newly acquired clinical skills. This experience prepares students to respond effectively when presented with similar incidents in practice. Additionally, simulations generate greater empathy as students learn and practice clinical skills by playing the role of both the provider and the clinician, building empathy for the clients and respect for the therapeutic relationship. Conclusion: As the field of social work integrates more online education, new technologies such as VR can help professors create learning environments that engage students and increase a sense of community, knowledge attainment, and mastery of the skill.