James Hutson

Lead XR Disruptor
Lindenwood University

Bio
Talk Title and Description

Bio:

Serving in the new role of XR Disruptor, Dr. Hutson also serves as Department Head of Art History and Visual Culture at Lindenwood University in Saint Charles, MO.

In the role, he was instrumental in establishing the Immersive Arts and Culture Hub and XR and Gaming Lab that serves the whole campus population and heads the VR Champions to integrate the use of immersive experiences across all programs, so all students get an equitable education and the same experiences regardless of background.

Dr. Hutson also heads the AI initiative and the AI Ambassadors, overseeing numerous studies on the integration of AI into all majors and teaching students how to future-proof themselves as emerging technologies disrupt higher education and our daily lives.

Finally, he has organized an international team of 62 researchers who are piloting a decentered collaborative authorship model in order to leverage interdisciplinarity and insights from different fields to breakdown silos to solve wicked problems.

Finally, he serves as editor-in-chief for the International Journal of Emerging and Disruptive Innovation in Education : VISIONARIUM (iJEDIE), an interdisciplinary forum for the publication of original peer-reviewed scholarship, data, and research addressing intersections of education and technology.

Talk Title and Description

Talk Title:

The Role of the Metaverse in Recentering Human Experience in the Age of Generative AI

Talk Description :

This presentation will explore the implications of the metaverse for our society and the way we experience the world.

With the advent of generative AI, we are on the cusp of a new era of technological advancement that will radically transform our lives. However, it is important that we take a humanity-first approach to this development, incorporating digital humanism and building the metaverse with a focus on accessibility and equality for all populations, including those that are neurodiverse.

In this presentation, we will delve into the potential of the metaverse to improve health and wellness through VR technology. We will discuss how VR can be used for therapy, particularly in the area of art therapy. This is a particularly impactful area, as millions of people will have access to tools that will enable them to create anything they can think of, and then immerse themselves in those experiences via VR.

We will also explore the potential of VR to mitigate symptoms of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). One example study we will examine is Hutson’s (2022) research on the role of virtual reality in art therapy to address ASD symptoms, which found that VR can be an effective tool for enhancing the therapeutic experience.

As we move forward in the age of generative AI, it is critical that we consider the role of the metaverse in recentering human experience. Join us for this presentation to learn more about the potential of the metaverse to promote health and wellness, accessibility, and equality for all.