Banca de DEFESA: THAÍS TEIXEIRA DOS SANTOS

IMMERSIVE TECHNOLOGIES IN EDUCATION IN HEALTH OF SCHOOL ADOLESCENTS

Adolescent. Health education. Virtual reality. Augmented Reality. Gamification.

Immersive technologies have been increasingly integrated into the educational context as they enable more interactive and revolutionary learning experiences. They are particularly important for promoting increased collaboration among users of virtual environments and enhancing creativity and motivation in their activities, especially when the target audience is teenagers. In this context, such technologies offer an opportunity to develop research that proposes effective, longitudinal, and self-sustainable strategies for health education initiatives. Therefore, the present study focuses on the development of a digital tool using gamification and Virtual Reality techniques aimed at teenagers, which can be applied in the school environment to prevent the adoption of risky behaviors by encouraging healthy food consumption, sleep habits, and regular physical activity. This research involves both development and application in the form of technological production. The study is organized into two sections: 1) Section I: Development of systematic reviews: a. Scientific evidence regarding the use of Extended Reality associated with food consumption, sleep quality, and physical activity in adolescents; b. Scientific evidence regarding the use of gamification strategies associated with food consumption, sleep quality, and physical activity in adolescents; b. 2) Scientific evidence regarding the use of Minecraft Education associated with food consumption, sleep quality, and physical activity in adolescents. Section II: Development of the digital tool using Virtual Reality technologies and gamification strategies based on the results of the systematic reviews presented in this thesis. For the systematic reviews, review protocols were registered in the International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews (PROSPERO) database (CRD42022373833, CRD42022373876, and CRD42023467642) based on the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses Protocols (PRISMA-P) guidelines. As a result, three protocol articles and two systematic reviews were developed. The tool was built in partnership with Universidad Católica San Antonio de Murcia in Murcia, Spain, with versions produced for both Brazil and Spain. This was based on the stages of constructing decision trees with experts from each country on the research topic. The objective of this instrument is to provide adolescents with the opportunity to make healthy choices in various environments. The tool development process is detailed in the sixth article included in this thesis, and currently, the testing process for the two versions is underway in their respective countries.