Discriminative Accuracy of Virtual Reality vs. Traditional Neuropsychological Assessments for Cognitive Impairment: A Systematic Review

This systematic review investigates the potential of virtual reality (VR) assessments to screen for cognitive impairment. Traditional neuropsychological assessments have limited cognitive domain assessment which could be resolved through VR’s robust, ecological user interface with the ability to assess how a user performs daily tasks. Eleven (n = 11) VR assessment systems and their data were analyzed for accuracy and correlation with traditional assessments. In summary, VR assessments were proven to have high discriminative accuracy and have demonstrated significant correlations with a variety of traditional neuropsychological assessments. Some held high or moderate correlation, and in certain cases, VR assessments outperformed traditional assessments through enhanced sensitivity. This highlights VR’s growing validity and utility as an effective tool for neuropsychological evaluation.