Evaluating Presence for Customer Experience in a Virtual Environment: Using a Nuclear Power Plant as an Example

Abstract

ABSTRACTIn contrast to experiences offered by traditional media, this study used a three‐dimensional virtual environment to evaluate customer experiences. The aims of this study were twofold: first, to investigate whether virtual interaction can impress customers in a visual or auditory sense and thereby further induce “presence”; and second, to understand how to provide a better sense of presence by using virtual interactions. This study used a nuclear power plant control room to construct virtual customer experience patterns. The results of the questionnaire showed no statistical significance, except for one question: “How responsive was the environment to actions that you initiated (or performed)?” During the experience, interactively receiving information in the active model offered a more significant sense of presence. For the physiological measurement, we used the multiscale entropy of complexity to analyze the heart rate. The complexity index for the active model proved significantly larger than for the passive, indicating better adaptability to the active model.