Leftward Optical Shift Induces Bias in Line Bisection: A Study with Healthy Subjects Using a Head-mounted Display

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to verify the effect on spatial perception in healthy young subjects of an unconscious leftward optical shift created by a head-mounted display (HMD) with an offset camera. We recruited 40 healthy right-handed adults who were divided into four groups according to the hand used in the tests and the visual direction displayed by the HMD (centered or 10° left). Each of the four groups (n = 10) undertook line bisection tasks across four combinations of variables: using a finger/stick or a mouse to point at a touch panel located 60 or 120 cm away from the subject. According to the results, regardless of the hand used, when the index finger or a stick was used (reaching condition), the line bisection point was displaced significantly to the left of the center. Additionally, a major left-displacement trend was observed in the short-distance reaching task, which did not require the use of a stick. In contrast, the long-distance task required a stick to be used, and the left displacements were all smaller than those for the short-distance tasks that used the index finger. This finding may be explained by the subjects having sufficient experience coordinating hand and eye movements in the condition where they used their dominant hand and reached with their own arms without using a stick.