Development of a 360° Interactive Virtual Reality Simulation on Normal Labor for Undergraduate Nursing Students

Abstract

Currently, instructional media employing a 360° Interactive Virtual Reality Simulation on normal labor remains limited in nursing education. Therefore, this study aimed to 1) develop a 360° Interactive Virtual Reality Simulation on Normal Labor for undergraduate nursing students; 2) evaluate its effectiveness; 3) compare students’ mean knowledge scores on normal labor before and after using the simulation; and 4) assess student satisfaction with the simulation. This study employed a research and development design using a quantitative approach with a quasi-experimental one-group pretest–posttest design. The sample consisted of 41 fourth-year undergraduate nursing students. The research was conducted from October 2024 to January 2025. The intervention was a 360° Interactive Virtual Reality Simulation on Normal Labor. The data collection instruments included a learning media quality assessment form, a knowledge assessment form on normal labor, and a learning media satisfaction assessment form. All instruments were validated by three experts, yielding Index of Item-Objective Congruence (IOC) values of 1.00, 1.00, and 1.00, respectively, and reliability coefficients of 0.84 and 0.87. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and paired t-test.

The research findings revealed the following: 1) The development of the 360° Interactive Virtual Reality Simulation on Normal Labor for undergraduate nursing students was grounded in standard institutional textbook content for normal labor, incorporating the ADDIE Model based on Kruse’s concept and Gagné’s Nine Events of Instruction. Learning was delivered through virtual reality headsets over a 45-minute session. The overall quality of the developed simulation was rated at the highest level (𝑥̅ = 4.43, S.D. = 0.39). 2) The effectiveness of the learning media, assessed using the E1/E2 formula, was 81.33/89.33, with an effectiveness index of 0.85. 3) post-intervention mean knowledge scores were significantly higher than pre-intervention scores (t = −24.69, p < .001). 4) Overall student satisfaction with the learning media was high (𝑥̅ = 4.13, S.D. = 0.54).

Conclusion The research findings demonstrated that the 360° Interactive Virtual Reality Simulation on Normal Labor is a process of learning with modern technology which is appropriate for promoting knowledge of Normal Labor process among undergraduate nursing students and serves as an alternative for teaching and learning in the 21^st century.