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Vol.15, No.2, May 2026. ISSN: 2217-8309 eISSN: 2217-8333
TEM Journal
TECHNOLOGY, EDUCATION, MANAGEMENT, INFORMATICS Association for Information Communication Technology Education and Science |
Enhancing Firefighter Training through Virtual Reality: Evaluating Performance Gains, User Acceptance, and the Impact of Prior Experience
Lucas O. P. S. Gomes, Pedro L. Oliveira, Péricles S. B. Mattos, Marcelo Sacks
© 2026 Lucas O. P. S. Gomes, published by UIKTEN. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 License. (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)
Citation Information: TEM Journal. Volume 15, Issue 2, Pages 1189-1199, ISSN 2217-8309, DOI: 10.18421/TEM152-21, May 2026.
Received: 09 August 2025.
Abstract:
This study evaluated Virtual Reality (VR) impact on firefighter training performance and acceptance among 96 industrial professionals and 30 university volunteers. Using Flaim simulators, participants underwent scenario-based sessions and assessments. Results indicated high acceptance and realism ratings from professionals. Volunteers exposed to VR achieved markedly higher success in extinguishing tasks than classroom-only controls. Notably, neither prior gaming habits nor tenure influenced outcomes, indicating that adaptation relies on domain-specific skills. Consequently, VR proves to be an effective, scalable adjunct to traditional live-fire exercises for safety-critical training, warranting further cost-benefit studies.
Keywords – Virtual Reality training, firefighter training, immersive simulation, industrial safety, human performance. |
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