Virtual Reality and Speech Analysis for the Assessment of Impulsivity and Decision-making

Introduction: Impulsivity is present in a range of mental disorders and has been associated with suicide. Traditional measures of impulsivity have certain limitations, such as the time required for administration or the lack of ecological validity. Virtual Reality (VR) may overcome these issues. This study aims to validate the VR assessment tool "Spheres \& Shield Maze Task" and speech analysis by comparing them with traditional measures. The hypothesis is that these innovative tools will be reliable and acceptable by patients, potentially improving the simultaneous assessment of impulsivity, decision-making, and jumping to conclusions. Methods and analysis: The sample consisted of adults divided into three groups: psychiatric outpatients with a history of suicidal thoughts and/or behaviors, psychiatric outpatients without such a history, and healthy volunteers. The sample size required was estimated at 300 participants (100 per group). Participants will complete the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale 11; the Urgency, Premeditation, Perseverance, Sensation Seeking, Positive Urgency, Impulsive Behavior Scale; Iowa Gambling Task; Continuous Performance Test; Stop signal Task, and Go/no-go task, three questions of emotional affect, the Spheres \& Shield Maze Task and two satisfaction surveys. During these tasks, participant speech will be recorded. External and internal consistency of the VR environment will be calculated. The association between VR-assessed impulsivity and history of suicidal thoughts and/or behavior, and the association between speech and impulsivity and decision-manking will also be explored. Ethics and dissemination: This study will result in a series of manuscripts that will be submitted to peer-reviewed journals for publication. It is hoped that this VR assessment tool combined with speech analysis can be used regularly in research and/or clinical settings in the near future.