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Choosing Empathy in a World of Endless Virtual Opportunities | Shawnee Baughman | TEDxCoeurdalene

590 views · Published 27 October 2016 · 13:06 · Indexed 23 September 2026

Channel: TEDx Talks · 2016 · Nonprofits & Activism

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From video games, to education to travel, VR is a game changing device.  But there may be an even better application for this new technology.  Shawnee Baughman argues in this powerful and thought provoking video, that VR's most important application is to enable people to truly understand and empathize with one another.

Shawnee  attended Stanford University where she studied communication and media studies with a focus in virtual reality technologies and applications. Her Honors Thesis, entitled "Virtual Superheros: Using Superpowers in Virtual Reality to Encourage Prosocial Behavior," studied the ways in which a positive virtual experience might increase prosocial behavior in real life. After completing her Bachelor's degree, Shawnee continued to study media and virtual reality in the Communication Department during her Masters program. After completing her Masters degree in 2014, she became the manager of the Virtual Human Interaction Lab at Stanford and continues to develop virtual reality applications that encourage empathy, learning, communication, and environmental behavior. To learn more about VHIL, see vhil.stanford.edu



This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at http://ted.com/tedx

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