Development and Evaluation of Synchronous Haptic Feedback Simulation in Dual-Perspective Virtual Reality for Labour Care: A Situated Learning-Based Randomised Controlled Trial

Labour care involving clinical decision-making and pain management is challenging for nursing students. Existing virtual teaching methods, such as spherical video-based virtual reality (SVVR), predominantly rely on visual and auditory stimuli, thus they provide no haptic feedback or interactivity. This study aimed to develop and evaluate a virtual reality synchronous haptic feedback system (VR-SHFS) to improve nursing students’ skills, knowledge, and empathy development regarding labour care. A randomised controlled trial was conducted with nursing students randomly assigned to experimental (VR-SHFS, n  = 40) and control (SVVR, n  = 40) groups. The experimental group engaged in haptic feedback and dual-perspective learning, whereas the control group learnt through 360° panoramic videos. Learning outcomes were assessed at the baseline (T0), immediately (T1) and two months (T2) after the intervention. Learning satisfaction was evaluated using the system usability scale (SUS) and a focus group. The data analysis revealed that the VR-SHFS group demonstrated significantly improved labour care skills and empathy at T1 and T2, as well as knowledge application at T2 compared to the SVVR group. From the students’ perspective, VR-SHFS can enhance clinical realism through haptic feedback and interactive learning, facilitating skill transfer, although there is a need for additional instructions and more time to become familiar with the system. VR learning approaches that integrate haptic feedback and dual perspectives effectively improve nursing students’ learning outcomes in labour care and outperform those based on SVVR. Improved VR technology and its interactive mechanism may further enhance learning outcomes and broaden clinical application.