Dr Ancret Szpak
Lecturer
School of Psychology
Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences
Eligible to supervise Masters and PhD (as Co-Supervisor) - email supervisor to discuss availability.
I am a part-time Lecturer in the School of Psychology at the University of Adelaide. I am currently teaching courses in the Online Graduate Diploma in Psychology (Advanced). My research focuses on the practical applications of using virtual reality and other wearable technologies to improve performance and well-being. I also research virtual reality side-effects and mitigation strategies.
My research focuses on leveraging virtual and augmented reality to develop and enhance real-world skills, particularly in healthcare, sports training, and cognitive performance. I specialise in the integration of immersive technologies to improve training, assessment, and well-being.
Research Themes:
- Enhancing collaborative telehealth consultations with Augmented Reality.
- Developing Virtual Reality training and assessment tools for remote community healthcare.
- Integrating Extended Reality and wearable sensors to support health and well-being.
- Examining skill transfer from Virtual Reality to real-world applications.
- Investigating the aftereffects of Virtual Reality on vision, cognition, balance, and well-being.
- Identifying factors that influence and mitigate cybersickness.
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Appointments
Date Position Institution name 2023 - ongoing Research Fellow University of South Australia 2023 - ongoing Lecturer University of Adelaide -
Education
Date Institution name Country Title 2012 - 2016 Flinders University Australia PhD -
Research Interests
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Journals
Year Citation 2024 Franze, A., Loetscher, T., Gallomarino, N. C., Szpak, A., Lee, G., & Michalski, S. C. (2024). Immersive virtual reality is more effective than non-immersive devices for developing real-world skills in people with intellectual disability.. J Intellect Disabil Res, 68(12), 1358-1373.
Scopus32023 Michalski, S. C., Gallomarino, N. C., Szpak, A., May, K. W., Lee, G., Ellison, C., & Loetscher, T. (2023). Improving real-world skills in people with intellectual disabilities: an immersive virtual reality intervention. Virtual Reality, 27(4), 3521-3532.
Scopus102022 Michalski, S. C., Szpak, A., Ellison, C., Cornish, R., & Loetscher, T. (2022). Using Virtual Reality to Improve Classroom Behavior in People With Down Syndrome: Within-Subjects Experimental Design. JMIR Serious Games, 10(2), e34373.
Scopus8 WoS2 Europe PMC22021 Clark, R. A., Szpak, A., Michalski, S. C., & Loetscher, T. (2021). Rest intervals during virtual reality gaming augments standing postural sway disturbance. Sensors, 21(20), 6817.
Scopus5 WoS3 Europe PMC12021 Michalski, S. C., Ellison, C., Szpak, A., & Loetscher, T. (2021). Vocational Training in Virtual Environments for People With Neurodevelopmental Disorders: A Systematic Review. Frontiers in Psychology, 12, 1-9.
Scopus15 WoS72020 Szpak, A., Michalski, S. C., & Loetscher, T. (2020). Exergaming with Beat Saber: An Investigation of Virtual Reality Aftereffects. Journal of Medical Internet Research, 22(10), 1-14.
Scopus67 WoS30 Europe PMC192020 Saredakis, D., Szpak, A., Birckhead, B., Keage, H. A. D., Rizzo, A., & Loetscher, T. (2020). Factors associated with virtual reality sickness in head-mounted displays: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 14, 17 pages.
Scopus438 WoS230 Europe PMC1502020 Michalski, S. C., Ellison, C., Szpak, A., & Loetscher, T. (2020). Vocational Training in Virtual Environments for People With Neurodevelopmental Disorders: A Systematic Review.
2020 Szpak, A., Michalski, S. C., & Loetscher, T. (2020). Exergaming With Beat Saber: An Investigation of Virtual Reality Aftereffects.
2019 Michalski, S. C., Szpak, A., Saredakis, D., Ross, T. J., Billinghurst, M., & Loetscher, T. (2019). Getting your game on: Using virtual reality to improve real table tennis skills. PLoS ONE, 14(9), 1-14.
Scopus103 WoS47 Europe PMC232019 Szpak, A., Michalski, S. C., Saredakis, D., Chen, C. S., & Loetscher, T. (2019). Beyond Feeling Sick: The Visual and Cognitive Aftereffects of Virtual Reality. IEEE Access, 7, 130883-130892.
Scopus64 WoS382019 Michalski, S. C., Szpak, A., & Loetscher, T. (2019). Using virtual environments to improve real-world motor skills in sports: A systematic review. Frontiers in Psychology, 10(SEP), 9 pages.
Scopus50 WoS24 Europe PMC182018 Saccone, E. J., Szpak, A., Churches, O., & Nicholls, M. E. R. (2018). Close interpersonal proximity modulates visuomotor processing of object affordances in shared, social space. Attention, Perception, & Psychophysics, 80(1), 54-68.
Scopus12 WoS10 Europe PMC92016 Szpak, A., Thomas, N. A., & Nicholls, M. E. R. (2016). Hemispheric asymmetries in perceived depth revealed through a radial line bisection task. Experimental Brain Research, 234(3), 807-813.
Scopus6 WoS4 Europe PMC42016 Szpak, A., Nicholls, M. E. R., Thomas, N. A., Laham, S. M., & Loetscher, T. (2016). “No man is an island”: Effects of interpersonal proximity on spatial attention. Cognitive Neuroscience, 7(1-4), 45-54.
Scopus9 WoS8 Europe PMC92015 Szpak, A., Loetscher, T., Churches, O., Thomas, N., Spence, C., & Nicholls, M. (2015). Keeping your distance: attentional withdrawal in individuals who show physiological signs of social discomfort. Neuropsychologia, 70, 462-467.
Scopus22 WoS19 Europe PMC142015 Szpak, A., Loetscher, T., Bastian, J., Thomas, N., & Nicholls, M. (2015). Visual assymetries for relative depth judgements in a three-dimensional space. Brain and Cognition, 99, 128-134.
Scopus5 WoS3 Europe PMC3 -
Conference Papers
Year Citation 2022 Szpak, A., Richards, A., Michalski, S. C., & Loetscher, T. (2022). Getting the Most out of Virtual Reality: Evaluating Short Breaks to Reduce Cybersickness and Cognitive Aftereffects. In Proceedings - 2022 IEEE Conference on Virtual Reality and 3D User Interfaces Abstracts and Workshops, VRW 2022 (pp. 533-537). Christchurch, New Zealand: IEEE.
DOI Scopus6 WoS12021 Ellison, C., Michalski, S., Loechester, T., & Szpak, A. (2021). Innovative vocational training using virtual reality for individuals with intellectual disability. In JOURNAL OF APPLIED RESEARCH IN INTELLECTUAL DISABILITIES Vol. 34 (pp. 1211). WILEY. 2021 Ellison, C., Faulkner, P., & Szpak, A. (2021). Building capacity to participate in bike riding using virtual reality. In JOURNAL OF APPLIED RESEARCH IN INTELLECTUAL DISABILITIES Vol. 34 (pp. 1302). WILEY. 2021 Michalski, S., Ellison, C., Loechester, T., & Szpak, A. (2021). Engaging people with Down syndrome in a virtual drawing task: An experimental study. In JOURNAL OF APPLIED RESEARCH IN INTELLECTUAL DISABILITIES Vol. 34 (pp. 1354). WILEY. -
Conference Items
Year Citation 2015 Szpak, A., Loetscher, T., Churches, O., Thomas, N. A., & Nicholls, M. E. R. (2015). Too close for comfort: The effect of interpersonal proximity on spatial attention. Poster session presented at the meeting of COGNITIVE PROCESSING. Rome, ITALY: SPRINGER HEIDELBERG. -
Preprint
Year Citation 2019 Michalski, S. C., Szpak, A., Saredakis, D., Ross, T., Billinghurst, M., & Loetscher, T. (2019). Getting Your Game On: Using Virtual Reality to Improve Real Table Tennis Skills.
DOI
Jul 2023 Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF), Augmented Reality to Improve Telemedicine Delivery and Wound Research.
Sep 2020 Indigenous Australian’s Health Programme (Dept. of Health), Improving telemedicine delivery for Aboriginal people with diabetes-related foot complications using Virtual and Augmented Reality (VR/AR).
Oct 2020 Augusta Zadow Awards (SafeWorkSA), Testing the Effectiveness of Virtual Reality-Based Training for Forklift Operation Safety Skills among Young People.
Oct 2020 Channel 7 Children’s Research Foundation, Helping children with intellectual disabilities develop real-world life skills in virtual reality.
Jul 2020 Road Safety Innovation Fund (Dept. of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Communications), Testing user experience methods for older vulnerable road users.
I am a Lecturer in the School of Psychology and I am currently coordinating online courses in the Graduate Diploma of Psychology Advanced (GDPA).
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Current Higher Degree by Research Supervision (University of Adelaide)
Date Role Research Topic Program Degree Type Student Load Student Name 2025 Co-Supervisor Using Virtual Reality to induce positive affect and explore the impact on wellbeing and anhedonia. Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Mr Elliot Howard 2024 Co-Supervisor The effectiveness of virtual reality on cognitive load and schema acquisition of STEM students Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Ms Jaclyn Crystal Steffan -
Other Supervision Activities
Date Role Research Topic Location Program Supervision Type Student Load Student Name 2025 - ongoing Principal Supervisor Fear in Focus: How Virtual Reality Shapes Attentional Responses to Threat The University of Adelaide - Honours Full Time Georgina De Battista 2025 - ongoing Principal Supervisor Breaking the Flow: Examining the Effects of Interrupted and Non-Interrupted Flow States in Virtual Reality on Attention and Performance The University of Adelaide - Honours Part Time Kerry Readett 2025 - ongoing Co-Supervisor Investigating the Impact of Breathing Techniques on Cognitive Performance Following Physical and Cognitive Exertion in Virtual Reality The University of Adelaide - Honours Full Time Brooke Petrinjak 2024 - 2024 Principal Supervisor Testing the Effectiveness of Virtual Reality Feedback-Based Training for Forklift Operation Safety Skills Among Young People University of Adelaide - Honours Part Time Emma O'Brien
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