A large-scale police study led by our partner, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam compares technology-enhanced training modalities. The outcomes will provide valuable information about several didactical aspects for the police training developed in SHOTPROS.

The new SHOTPROS study has started in June 2020 at a European Law Enforcement Agency. More than 800 police officers perform training in three different settings to train de-escalation of risky situations. VU Amsterdam has set-up a plan to conduct their study through the course of the training. They will be supported by the consortium partners AIT, Berlin Police and Police NRW. The training settings 2D simulation and Virtual Reality (VR) training will be observed, examined and compared. The main research topics are:  

• Comparison between 2D training technology (such as the VirTra 300, a 300-degree law enforcement small arms simulator) and a 3D training technology (police-specific VR training regarding stress, training effect and utility of the training technology, and subjective experience
• Feedback options in VR and their effect of learning
• Effect of adding a feedback stimulus in 2D and VR training
• Embedding of VR in the training routines

The outcomes of this study will provide insights into didactical aspects of VR training such as the use of different feedback options for optimal learning and the overall experience with VR. These results will be incorporated into the DMA-SR (“Decision-making and acting under stress and in high-risk situations”) training framework for VR training. Also, the results will be beneficial for the training experience assessment in work package 4 and the execution of further human factors studies and experiments in work package 6. The first-hand insights into the experiences of police officers and police instructors with VR as a training tool will be of added value for the whole SHOTPROS project.