Using Virtual Reality to Study the Effectiveness of Crowd Control Medium and Information

Abstract

When designing crowd control through simulations, the appropriate crowd-control medium (objects used to convey control information, e.g., signages or security guards) and information should be selected, considering the crowd’s compliance with control instructions. However, there is still scope for further research on the influence of control medium and information on compliance behavior. Therefore, in this study, we measured the effectiveness of medium and information in guiding participants’ route choices by conducting a crowd experiment using virtual reality. The experimental findings confirmed that in terms of control medium, the guidance proffered by security guards was more effective than signage, with the odds of compliance rate approximately 1.54 times greater. Regarding control information, Guide control (direct guidance instruction) was more effective and received approximately 1.22 times greater odds of compliance rate than Advise control (indirect guidance through information presentation). Crowd-control designers can use the results obtained in this study to evaluate the effectiveness of control measures in crowd simulations.