The Xrisis Room: A Virtual Reality Experience
In an age of increasing polarisation and declining interpersonal empathy, traditional leadership education must evolve to meet new global challenges.
A Vision for Leadership Training in the Digital Age
At its core, The Xrisis Room is a mixed reality educational simulation designed to enhance participants’ ability to navigate high-stakes negotiations through empathy-driven engagement. Set in a futuristic crisis room environment, the experience places players in the role of an international peacemaker tasked with averting war. The mission: persuade a fictional president on the brink of launching a preemptive military strike to step back from the edge and consider peaceful alternatives.
Participants must use empathy, emotional intelligence, and strategic communication to build trust, uncover underlying tensions, and propose viable solutions—all within a 7-minute VR scenario. This condensed yet intense simulation fosters rapid cognitive and emotional learning, reflective of the pressure leaders face in real-world crisis diplomacy.
Technological and Pedagogical Innovation
The Xrisis Room is more than a game—it is a research-based learning tool that combines cutting-edge technologies with a robust training methodology. Key features include:
- AI-powered language analysis to evaluate the empathy level in the user’s dialogue.
- Feedback loops to support iterative learning and self-reflection.
- A safe environment to explore complex emotional and political dynamics without real-world repercussions.
- Multilingual options to expand global accessibility.
- An intuitive user interface that lowers the barrier to entry for users across disciplines and backgrounds.
Measuring Success: From Empathy to Action
The effectiveness of The Xrisis Room is assessed through a combination of quantitative and qualitative metrics:
- Empathy Score Tracking: AI analyzes the user's language to quantify empathetic engagement over time.
- Pre- and Post-Experience Self-Assessments: Participants complete brief surveys to reflect on their negotiation confidence, empathy, and emotional awareness before and after the simulation.
- Performance Analytics: The system tracks user decisions, time spent on key tasks, and the use of empathy-based language strategies.
- Facilitator Feedback: Optional live or asynchronous facilitation allows educators to provide personalized insights and observations on user interaction.
- Longitudinal Impact Studies: Where possible, follow-up studies are conducted to assess retention of negotiation and empathy skills in real-world scenarios.
Together, these measures ensure that the experience is not only engaging, but also pedagogically sound and impactful in cultivating future-ready leadership skills.
A Flexible and Immersive Installation
The experience is designed to be both portable and adaptable, deployed through a 4x4x3m inflatable cube tent known as the "Xrisis Room"—a futuristic installation equipped with atmospheric lighting, projection systems, and Meta Quest VR compatibility. This mobile format makes it ideal for classroom settings, leadership retreats, international conferences, and public exhibitions.
Who It’s For
The Xrisis Room serves a diverse audience committed to social impact and ethical leadership. Target participants include:
- Government officials and public servants engaged in peacebuilding and diplomacy.
- Corporate leaders aiming to foster inclusive and emotionally intelligent leadership styles.
- Civil society actors, continuous learners, and the broader public interested in innovative education for global challenges.
- University students in international relations, political science, and leadership programs.
Contact
To learn more about The Xrisis Room, book an installation, or collaborate on research and training initiatives, please contact:
Dr. Martin Waehlisch
Associate Professor of Transformative Technologies, Innovation and Global Affairs University of Birmingham: