The University of Patras participates in the new research project Positive: Prevention Of Stress by exploiting an Innovative Virtual Environment. This is a 24-month project, funded by Erasmus + and centrally coordinated by the ISMAI University Institute in Portugal. For the University of Patras, the project is coordinated by Professor Michalis Xenos of the Department of Computer Engineering and Informatics of the University of Patras.
The project also includes the Agrupamento de Escolas de Rates group of basic education and pre-school schools in Portugal, the Arsakeio Lyceum of Patras, the Los Pinos school which is a private educational centre in Spain and the public organization “eMundus” which deals with research and implementation activities in the field of education in Lithuania.
The main goal of the POSITIVE project is to help students learn first how to recognise stress and then how to overcome the obstacles associated with stressful situations during their school life. The consortium, after gathering and examining the possible factors that expose students to stress, will outline the nature, sources, symptoms and appropriate stress relief treatments for children and young people, focusing on the school environment. In this context, a learning 3D virtual world will be created that will aim to raise awareness about stress issues, while at the same time help students better cope with their stress through properly designed games.
The project started in January 2022, and the inaugural meeting took place online on the 20th & 21st of the same month.
