Psychological prevention of unsafe behavior: experience in using virtual reality technologies

Context and relevance. The growth of man-made risks and psycho-emotional stress makes the prevention of unsafe behavior critically important, especially in medicine, occupational safety and emergency response. Digital technologies (VR/AR, AI, biometrics) make it possible to simulate critical scenarios without risk, track reactions and personalize training. Objective: to analyze the use of digital technologies in the field of psychological prevention of unsafe behavior from the perspective of various areas of psychology. Results. The key areas of application of digital technologies have been identified: occupational psychology, medical and extreme psychology. In the field of labor: for safety training; modeling industrial accidents; conducting large-scale exercises; predictive equipment maintenance. In the field of health: for personnel training; to prevent accidents in patients with trauma, prevention of domestic injuries in risk groups (the elderly); prevention of unsafe behavior in psychological problems (panic attacks, PTSD). In extreme psychology: modeling critical situations that are inaccessible in reality without risk for participants; training specialists in dangerous professions (firefighters, rescuers); training civilians in emergency response skills; studying social behavior and emotional reactions under stress; identifying predispositions to risky social actions. In the psychology of safety, AI technologies are used to prevent information and economic risks. Problem areas have been identified: virtual adaptation, which is unrelated to a person's actual preparedness for dangerous situations; the inability to reproduce the full spectrum of exposure to extreme environments in VR; insufficient study of delayed effects; and ethical risks. Areas for promising development have been identified: personalized training through biofeedback, dynamic modeling using AI in real time, and the use of neuroimaging methods. Conclusions. The digitalization of psychology expands the methodological arsenal and helps reduce real risks through the advance psychological and behavioral preparation of subjects for extreme conditions.

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