Ana Jacinta Pessoa da Pinha

Ana Jacinta Pessoa da Pinha is a PhD Student at Lusófona University's School of Communication, Arts and Information (ECATI), specializing in Artificial Intelligence and Human-Computer Interaction. She actively contributes to research at the Human Environment Interaction Lab (HEI-Lab) through virtual reality development using Unity and psycho-physiological toolkits.

• PhD in Computer Science (ongoing), Lusófona University
• Bachelor's & Master's in Information and Communication Technologies/Computer Science, University of Lisbon

Research Interests: Ana focuses on creating immersive virtual environments for training applications, particularly in healthcare domains. Her work bridges Virtual Reality development with Psychophysiology measurement, using technologies like Unity to create interactive simulations. She explores how VR impacts anxiety responses and user engagement, while also contributing to Cybersecurity Awareness Training systems.

Research Outputs: Ana's publications demonstrate cross-disciplinary work spanning 2016-2023, with recent studies on VR game anxiety responses and foundational work on virtual patient simulations for pharmacy education. Her research combines Artificial Intelligence with healthcare training, evidenced by projects like CATS (2024 oral presentation) and TechMap (digital literacy assessment).

Labs & Collaborations: Ana works at HEI-Lab (Human Environment Interaction Laboratory), collaborating with researchers across Portugal on VR applications, psychophysiological monitoring, and educational simulations. She participates in multi-institutional projects involving ILIND (Lusófono Institute for Research and Development) and external partners in health sciences.