Virtual mindfulness meditation: Virtual reality and electroencephalography for health gamification

Mindfulness practices have been shown to improve various health related aspects of patient lifestyles including the reduction of depressive relapse in those who suffer from depression [4] and reduction of perceived pain in chronic pain patients [3]. Mindfulness meditation has also been shown to reduce stress and encourage relaxation [10] which is naturally beneficial for many demographics, including those with low life satisfaction [1]. This paper outlines an attempt to translate learning outcomes of mindfulness practice with gamification into educational software. The software provides immersive virtual environments and guided meditation tracks to catalyze mindfulness learning practices. It also supports electroencephalography (EEG) data collection to monitor the affective states of participants, which allows the software to provide visual feedback in real-time. Its design is heavily influenced by gamification strategies and contemporary game design practices in order to encourage persistent training behaviors in participants over longer periods of time.