Can 32 bit Operating Systems run on 64 bit hardware in a VM?

Just got off the phone with my uncle, who needs to drive an obscure german USB device on his new machine. Only problem is…

He’s running a 64-bit vista, which means that this obscure hardware will likely never have a driver for it. I directed him at a virtual machine (sent him to VMware). He says he has a license of a 32 bit XP lying around, but does not want to use that as his primary OS for reasons I cannot understand.

I’m pretty sure that he’ll be able to run the 32 bit operating system on the 64 bit hardware in a VM, but I’m not 100% sure.

Also, most VMs support USB devices, right?

Or do I need to call my uncle back?