Levels Of Immersion Research Articles

Effect of a Virtual Biophilic Residential Environment on the Perception and Responses of Seniors

This study investigates the effects of a virtual biophilic residential environment on seniors’ physiological and subjective responses to evaluate its potential to promote healing and recovery. Thirty seniors were exposed to three different scales (units, buildings, complexes) of virtual biophilic residential environments that combined both physical and digital biophilic elements. Physiological responses, including heart rate, heart rate variability, and galvanic skin response, were measured alongside self-reported levels of satisfaction and immersion. The primary objective was to assess the effectiveness of physical and digital design interventions at each residential scale. The findings revealed that the virtual biophilic residential environment reduced physiological stress in seniors, with the most significant impact observed at the unit scale. Digital design interventions further enhance stress relief benefits, indicating that integrating physical and digital elements in biophilic residential environments can positively influence seniors’ stress levels. Additionally, significant correlations were identified between physiological responses and subjective perceptions of immersion and satisfaction. This study is valuable as an initial comparative analysis of the effectiveness of physical and digital approaches in biophilic design. This paper is a preliminary study and is significant in that it systematizes virtual environment research from an age-friendly perspective and expands approaches to biophilic design.

Assessing the influence of immersive virtual reality on microbiology education: contrasting low and high immersion levels with signalling principle

ABSTRACT Virtual reality is revolutionising science education, particularly in microbiology, by allowing students to explore intricate structures as if they were the size of a bacterium. This study investigates the impact of different levels of immersion and signalling principles on students’ presence, interest, and engagement in VR learning environments. Results indicate that in low-immersive virtual reality (LiVR), the use of the signalling principle (SP) significantly enhances presence, interest, and engagement compared to the non-signalling principle (NSP). However, in High Immersive Virtual Reality (HiVR), there were no significant differences in presence or interest between SP and NSP groups, although HiVR resulted in significantly higher engagement than LiVR. These findings suggest that while signalling principles enhance learner experiences in lower immersive settings, their impact diminishes in higher immersive contexts. This study underscores the importance of considering immersion levels and instructional design principles in creating effective VR learning environments, especially for complex subjects like microbiology. The insights gained highlight the transformative potential of VR in education, providing immersive, interactive, and impactful learning experiences that deepen students’ understanding and engagement.

Immersive learning in medical education: analyzing behavioral insights to shape the future of VR-based courses

BackgroundThe emergence of virtual reality (VR) for medical education enables a range of new teaching opportunities. Skills and competences can be trained that cannot be demonstrated in any other way due to physical or ethical limitations. Immersion and presence may play an important role for learning in this context. This study investigates whether this VR-based, immersive software is an effective tool for assessing medical learning objectives by comparing behavioral outcomes in VR and actor-based simulations, and examines how these behaviors relate to immersion levels and their impact on learning success.MethodsTo evaluate the effectiveness of the new teaching method, objective behavioral outcomes were identified as part of a dermatological learning unit and VR as a method was compared with actor-based simulation training. In addition, subjective questionnaires were collected to compare the levels of immersion in both concepts.ResultsIt was shown that primary learning objectives can be addressed well in VR. However, secondary learning objectives that fall into the field of basic skills seem to be delivered better in the actor-based training than in VR. This appears to be an effect of weaker immersion measured in VR training.ConclusionsIt can be said that the implementation of basic skills training depends largely on the level of immersion in the teaching method used. While primary learning subjectives can be trained and assessed well, at present, it does not appear to be fully possible to train secondary skills with the technical status quo in VR. However, the observation of secondary learning objectives can serve as an indicator for the assessment of immersion in the future.

Save Our Sea: Game-Based Learning on Sea Environment Care

This study introduces the development and evaluation of a 2D marine pollution awareness game to address the pressing issue of marine pollution. The study addresses the challenges associated with raising awareness about marine pollution, including the lack of knowledge and awareness among the general public regarding the impact of marine pollution on the environment. The lack of effective educational tools and resources to communicate the complexities of marine pollution poses a significant problem. To tackle these issues, the study aims to develop a 2D marine pollution awareness game that not only educates but also engages players in a meaningful way. The game's objective is to educate players about the environmental impact of marine pollution while engaging them through interactive gameplay. The Rapid Application Development (RAD) methodology involved designing the game's mechanics, graphics, and audio elements using tools like Construct, Aseprite, and Canva, followed by usability testing using the Game Experience Questionnaire (GEQ). The findings indicate positive feedback from participants, highlighting high levels of immersion and positive affect, but also suggest areas for improvement in terms of the challenge level and flow. Future work includes enhancing the game's challenges, adding multiple languages for broader accessibility, and exploring the integration of VR/AR technologies to enhance educational impact. This study underscores the potential of the game as a tool for environmental education and conservation, with opportunities for further development and impact in raising awareness about marine pollution.

Twelve tips for integrating Virtual Reality Simulation into Health Professions Curricula

Virtual reality simulation (VRS) has the potential to disrupt and transform current understandings and practices in simulation-based education in health professions curricula. Recent technological developments, including AI applications, give the learner high levels of immersion into a virtual environment that even more closely mimic the real world than heretofore. At the same time, there are significant obstacles facing educators who strive to integrate VRS into their simulation curricula. We have written a VRS handbook for nurse educators, developed VR scenarios and delivered VRS workshops to undergraduate nursing students. Our twelve tips are aimed at undergraduate curriculum developers and simulation leaders, guiding them on how to support educators in integrating VRS into their curricula. The tips describe key considerations to be addressed in the development and integration of VRS into curricula. The tips are timely, as health professions education is on the cusp of entering technology-enhanced simulation, of which VRS will be a key player.

Exploration of a virtual reality exercise to help train police with responding to mental health crises in the community.

A substantial number of police-citizen interactions involve a civilian presenting in a mental health crisis, often with law enforcement as the first point of contact. Traditional training methods offer minimal opportunity for police to practice navigating such civilian interactions or to develop and strengthen relevant skills. Virtual reality (VR) offers a promising avenue for addressing this gap by immersing police officers in realistic, controlled environments that could help them to acclimatise to these encounters and understand their own reactions to them. To examine the extent to which law enforcement officers become immersed in a virtual training environment (VTE), to assess their empathy and sympathy towards a non-player character (NPC) presenting with schizophrenic psychosis and how empathy and sympathy relate to virtual immersion. Forty police officers-about a fifth of the department approached-participated in a VR mental health training scenario. Officers' immersion in the VTE was assessed using a 28-item Presence Questionnaire and their empathy and sympathy were measured using adapted standard scales. The study employed Fisher's Exact Test and Spearman's correlation to analyse the relationships between immersion, empathy and sympathy. Most officers experienced good levels of immersion, although nearly half felt confused or disoriented at the beginning of the session. Officers reported moderate levels of sympathy and higher empathy towards a non-player character. Significant correlations were found between specific aspects of immersion (e.g. sensory engagement) and empathy. Fisher's Exact Test revealed strong associations between physical interactions in the VTE and empathy/sympathy. Our findings show that police are willing and able to engage in a VR exercise to learn about their response to people in a mental health crisis and that, in such circumstances, they can be both sympathetic and empathic. Next steps will be exploration of the value of such a tool to enhance real-life responding.

Training transfer validity of virtual reality simulator assessment

This study utilises computer-based simulations to explore the transfer effects of competency training in maritime education, addressing the current lack of research on their transferability to real-world scenarios.The research explores the accuracy of procedural knowledge assessment using virtual reality (VR), positing that head-mounted display (HMD) VR offers stronger concurrent validity through training transfer measures than 3D desktop VR. This is evaluated by regression on a training transfer condition. It also investigates motivation’s influence on training transfer and the regression model of this relationship.Fifteen marine engineering students were divided into two experimental groups using 3D desktop VR and HMD VR systems, with eight experts in the control group. The students had previously received traditional lecture-based instruction and were given practical training using a 2D desktop simulator in the same scenario as in the VR treatment and in the training transfer condition.The ANCOVA design experiment involved two levels of technical immersion before the operation of real-life equipment. Neither technical immersion nor expertise level as independent variables were found to have a significant effect in the relationship of the assessment predicting the training transfer. The direct relationship was significant (R2adj = 0.436) and further analysed with the influence of motivation, resulting in a moderation model with a decent effect size (R2 = 0.740). Based on these findings, we can infer that both types of VR simulations used for assessment demonstrate concurrent validity in predicting real-life performance before we discuss and define the characteristics of the observed transfer according to theory.

Becoming Breadthrog: Role-playing games, metacognition and the creative writer

All fiction writers work with characters, and many deploy metaphors to describe this relationship: characters may be tools, friends or voices in the writer’s head. These are vivid images but unsuitable for understanding a past writer’s thought process or advising a future writer. This article takes a practical and cognitive approach to the writer-character relationship. We consider a writer’s approach to character as a form of problem-solving and use metacognitive science to understand why a writer chooses a particular level of immersion within a character and how they instinctively or strategically move between different cognitive and emotional frames. While literary and creative writing studies lack the precise language to describe these levels of immersion, a useful parallel exists in game studies. We draw on the sociology of role-playing games to understand and describe the relationship between the creator and the fictional character. Combining insights from game studies and metacognitive psychology, we propose a three-level model of the creative writer’s cognitive relationship with their fictional characters, ranging from full immersion to critical distance. Our model serves two purposes: its specific language can illuminate further studies of character writing and shape targeted interventions to assist creative writers struggling with questions of character.

Twelve tips for integrating Virtual Reality Simulation into Health Professions Curricula.

Virtual reality simulation (VRS) has the potential to disrupt and transform current understandings and practices in simulation-based education in health professions curricula. Recent technological developments, including AI applications, give the learner high levels of immersion into a virtual environment that even more closely mimic the real world than heretofore. At the same time, there are significant obstacles facing educators who strive to integrate VRS into their simulation curricula. We have written a VRS handbook for nurse educators, developed VR scenarios and delivered VRS workshops to undergraduate nursing students. Our twelve tips are aimed at undergraduate curriculum developers and simulation leaders, guiding them on how to support educators in integrating VRS into their curricula. The tips describe key considerations to be addressed in the development and integration of VRS into curricula. The tips are timely, as health professions education is on the cusp of entering technology-enhanced simulation, of which VRS will be a key player.

Does Embodiment in Virtual Reality Boost Learning Transfer? Testing an Immersion-Interactivity Framework

This study investigates the role of embodiment when learning a technical procedure in immersive virtual reality (VR) by introducing a framework based on immersion and interactivity. The goal is to determine how increasing the levels of immersion and interactivity affect learning experiences and outcomes. In a 2 × 2 factorial design, 177 high school students were assigned to one of four experimental conditions, varying levels of immersion (learning in immersive virtual reality wearing a head-mounted display (VR) vs. learning via a computer screen (PC)) and interactivity (directly manipulating objects using controllers/mouse and keyboard (congruent) vs. indirectly manipulating objects with a laser pointer to select a course of action (incidental)). The main outcome measure was a transfer task in which students were required to perform the task they had learned in the virtual environment using concrete objects in real life. Results demonstrated that students in the VR conditions experienced significantly higher levels of presence, agency, location, body ownership, and embodied learning compared to participants in the PC conditions. Additionally, students’ performance during the virtual lesson predicted their real-life transfer test. However, there were no significant effects of immersion or interactivity on any of the transfer measures. The results suggest that high immersion in VR can increase self-reported measures of presence, agency, location, body ownership, and embodied learning among students. However, increased embodiment—manipulated by adding immersion and congruent manipulation of objects did not improve transfer.

Music as a Tool for Affiliative Bonding: A Second-Person Approach to Musical Engagement

Music listening or playing can create a feeling of connection with other listeners or performers, with distinctive levels of immersion and absorption. A major question, in this regard, is whether the music does have an ontological status, as an end in itself, or whether it is only a tool for the mediation of something else. In this paper we endorse a mediating perspective, with a focus on the music’s potential to increase affiliative bonding between listeners, performers and even the music. Music, then, is hypostasized as “something that touches us” and can be considered a partner of affiliative exchange. It has the potential to move us and to modulate the way we experience the space around us. We therefore elaborate on the tactile dimension of being moved, as well as on the distinction between personal, peripersonal, and extrapersonal space, with a corresponding distinction between first-person, second-person, and third-person perspectives on musical engagement.

Feasibility study on virtual reality-based training for skin cancer screening: Bridging the gap in dermatological education

AbstractDespite growing interest in the inclusion of virtual reality (VR) in medical education, its full potential for immersive and interactive training remains underutilized, particularly in dermatology. As part of a multidisciplinary project, we tested the feasibility of integrating a VR training scenario for a complete skin cancer screening into the curriculum with 58 medical students. The evaluation focused on simulation usability, cognitive task load, immersion, change in perceived competence, suitability, and cybersickness using established and adapted questionnaires. Participants reported rather high levels of system usability and immersion and medium cognitive task load. Self-assessed competence in performing a skin cancer screening increased significantly after the training simulation.Prior skin cancer screening experience correlated positively with self-assessed competence and theoretical knowledge, which themselves were neither related to gender nor age. Age correlated negatively with perceived usability and immersion, enjoyment of learning during the simulation and assessed appropriateness of the simulation to learn a dermatological full-body examination while being positively correlated with perceived cybersickness. Gender was significantly associated with the need for technical help during the simulation and openness to new technologies.As a blueprint of a feasibility evaluation, this study can contribute to further refinement of the presented and relatable VR applications in medical curricula.

The psycho-social impact of video games on K12 Spanish students

This research aims to study the psycho-social impact of video games on K12 students. For this, a probabilistic topic modelling analysis method based on text mining approach has been performed. This process is based on nodes’ connectivity and it has been developed through K Means approach; by launching the Jenks-Breaks algorithm. The sex differences are calculated according to a nonlinear dynamics approach based on Hurst exponent and multifractal function and the influence of time with the application of the Sobel test. The results show which are the most used video games by K12 and their psycho-social impact on students based on four categories: (1) boredom and sadness, (2) happiness and socialization, (3) immersion, and (4) families' conflicts. There are significant differences between boys and girls depending on the games they use, a factor that increases when playing more than two hours a day. For boys, games like FIFA and Fortnite produce higher levels of immersion and family conflict, while for girls, games are perceived as sources of greater happiness and a means to reinforce friendship and camaraderie, particularly with games like Brawl Stars, Rocket League, and PKXD.

From physical feelings to empathy: An immersive virtual reality approach to facilitate physical empathy

Studies have suggested that virtual reality (VR) as an ‘empathy-making machine’ has the potential to trigger historical empathy. Different VR technologies offer different levels of immersion with different educational implications. Higher immersive VR technology has shown promise in enhancing learners’ empathy levels. However, how highly immersive VR promotes learners’ historical empathy in real-life classroom settings has not been explored. Hence, this study focuses on comparing two levels of immersive VR-supported learning for historical empathy acquisition among secondary learners. A total of 49 students were recruited. A quasi-experimental design was employed and the quantitative and qualitative data were analyzed to explore participants’ historical knowledge and empathy. The quantitative data show no significant difference between immersive virtual reality (IVR) approach-supported learning and flatscreen VR-supported learning. However, the qualitative analysis suggests that the students from the IVR group showed stronger ‘physical empathy’. Intriguingly, even though the tests did not demonstrate that the students learned more in IVR-supported learning, they self-reported that they learned better in IVR-supported learning. The paper identifies implications for the connection between ‘physical empathy’ and the level of immersive technology.

Enhancing User Experience in Virtual Museums: Impact of Finger Vibrotactile Feedback

Virtual reality (VR) offers immersive visual and auditory experiences, transporting users to alternate realities. However, existing VR systems lack realistic haptic feedback mechanisms, resulting in unsatisfactory immersive experiences. In this study, we developed and tested a haptic glove that simulates realistic tactile sensations, enhancing user interaction with virtual artifacts. Our research investigates the impact of finger-specific vibrotactile feedback (FSVF) on user experience in virtual museum environments. Using a mixed-methods approach, 30 participants engaged in object-manipulation tasks in three settings: no haptic feedback, standard controller feedback, and vibrotactile glove feedback. The findings demonstrate that the vibrotactile glove approach considerably improves user accuracy, efficiency, immersion, and satisfaction compared with other traditional interaction methods. Participants completed tasks more accurately and quickly with the glove, reporting high levels of engagement and immersion. The results highlight the potential of advanced haptic feedback in transforming virtual reality technology, particularly for educational and cultural applications. Further, they provide valuable insights for designing and applying future haptic technology in immersive environments.

Virtual reality for postsurgical pain management: An explorative randomized controlled study

BackgroundVirtual reality (VR) is a promising tool in a multimodal analgesic approach; however, evidence regarding virtual reality for postsurgical pain is limited. This study investigates the initial effectiveness and feasibility of self-administered virtual reality in postsurgical pain management. MethodsPatients reporting a postsurgical pain score ≥4 were randomized for control or VR, stratified for 3 interventions with varying levels of immersion and interaction. Subjects were instructed to use virtual reality as add-on treatment at least 3 times a day for 10 minutes on days 2 till 4 postoperatively. Primary outcome was the mean daily pain intensity. Results of pain scores were related to patient and intervention characteristics, to explore which characteristics interact with virtual reality effects. Secondary outcomes were analgesic use, anxiety, stress, and feasibility. ResultsOne hundred patients were included in the analyses: 37 in the control group and 63 for VR. VR did not demonstrate a significant effect on self-reported pain scores (P = .43), nor were specific patient or intervention characteristics associated with greater VR effects. Analgesic usage did not differ between groups. However, there was a trend toward greater cumulative percentages of patients achieving a 30% pain reduction, and significantly lower daily experienced stress (P = .01) and anxiety (P = .03) levels in VR intervention groups. VR was used less than prescribed, mainly because of illness and pain. Adverse events included disorientation, nausea, and fatigue. ConclusionsThis explorative study did not demonstrate initial effectiveness of VR as add-on pain treatment regarding pain and analgesic use; however, VR positively affected stress and anxiety. VR is safe and suitable for a wide target audience, and feasibility differed between interventions. Personalizing and improving VR technology may enhance its effectiveness.

The influence of acculturation, enculturation, and religious orientation on Arab/Middle Eastern North African (MENA) Americans' help-seeking attitudes.

Help-seeking attitudes among Arab/Middle Eastern North African (MENA) Americans remain an understudied outcome, despite significant levels of reported mental health concerns. Hierarchical linear regression was used to examine whether Arab/MENA Christians and Muslims' help-seeking attitudes were significantly associated with acculturation, enculturation, and religious orientation. Results indicated that acculturation levels were positively associated with help-seeking attitudes, wherein individuals with higher levels of dominant society immersion were more likely to report more positive attitudes toward help seeking. Extrinsic social religious orientation (ESRO) interacted with religious affiliation (i.e., Christian or Muslim) wherein higher levels of ESRO were associated with lower help-seeking attitudes for Muslims but not Christians. Moreover, enculturation and religious affiliation interacted so that higher levels of enculturation were associated with less positive help-seeking attitudes for Christians and more positive help-seeking attitudes for Muslims. Finally, intrinsic religious orientation interacted with religious affiliation so that increasing levels of intrinsic religious orientation predicted lower levels of help-seeking attitudes for Muslims and higher levels for Christians. These findings have implications for working with Arab/MENA groups and implementing interventions to improve access and attitudes toward mental health services, which are often stigmatized (i.e., socially devalued) in this population. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Exploring team collaboration in the metaverse from a human capital perspective

PurposeWe aim to help better understand how organizations can develop their human capital in virtual teams through technological advances in the metaverse. To this end, we examine how virtual team collaboration with virtual reality technologies in the metaverse compares to traditional videoconferencing. Our study demonstrates how the metaverse can facilitate collaboration in virtual teams and examines the factors that are critical to successful team collaboration in the metaverse.Design/methodology/approachWe conduct a lab experiment comparing Meta Horizon Workrooms with Zoom. Using a between-subjects design, we observe virtual team collaboration in five teams. All teams solved the Lost on the Moon Exercise used by NASA to train teamwork. We collected data during and after the experiment to explore emerging collaborative behaviors based on audio and video recordings, a quantitative survey, and qualitative feedback.FindingsWe find higher levels of immersion, social presence, and collaboration among team members in the metaverse. We further identify new opportunities for social interaction and greater focus on team members and shared tasks. Our study suggests that the metaverse can enable effective collaboration in virtual teams and uncovers related guidance for organizations.Originality/valueWe connect the research streams on the metaverse, team collaboration, and human capital. We add empirical evidence to the largely theoretical discussion on the metaverse and explore collaboration tools for virtual teams, helping to enable effective collaboration of organizations’ virtual teams. We hope to stimulate further research to unlock the full collaborative potential of the metaverse and establish the metaverse for effective development of human capital.

Learning in the spherical video-based virtual reality context: effects of immersion level and spatial ability on learning performance and experience

ABSTRACT Spherical video-based virtual reality (SVVR) is an emerging technology in the creation of virtual reality learning contexts. Existing studies have shown that immersion level and spatial ability affect learning performance and experience. Different levels of spatial ability also result in different learning performances and experiences in different levels of immersion, but this interaction effect remains unclear in the SVVR context. We conducted a 2 × 2 factorial experimental study to investigate the interactive effect of immersion level (high vs. low) and students’ spatial ability (high vs. low) on learning performance and experience in the SVVR context. A total of 120 college students participated in the study. The results showed that learning performance, presence, and motivation were significantly higher for high immersion than for low immersion. Learning performance was significantly higher for learners with high spatial ability than for those with low spatial ability. There was a significant interaction effect between immersion level and spatial ability on learning performance. The learning performance of learners with low spatial ability was significantly higher at high immersion than at low immersion. These findings provide a reference for educators to better apply SVVR to their teaching and help them personalize their instruction to students.

Cybersickness with passenger VR in the aircraft: Influence of turbulence and VR content

Using VR in the airplane cabin is appealing, primarily because of the enhanced entertainment value, increased privacy, and improved recreational opportunities provided by higher levels of immersion. However, VR applications in aircrafts contain the risk of passengers developing cybersickness. The particular environment of a moving aircraft in interaction with visual representation of movements in VR could lead to severe cybersickness, especially during turbulence. We had 129 participants experience VR in a full flight simulator with different content (static or dynamic VR clips) and during varying phases of flight including turbulence. The employed simulator is equipped with a cabin module, creating an economically valid environment. VR induced significant but mild symptoms of cybersickness. Nausea and dizziness symptoms were most severe during turbulence and especially with dynamic VR content being presented. More anxious participants tended to report more symptoms. In addition, there was an association with video game use and attitudes toward new technologies. While mild content and short exposure times only led to fairly low expressions of cybersickness, a long-term use of VR under turbulence could possibly become a concern. Airlines should especially address passengers’ negative attitudes toward new technologies, and VR in particular, to reduce fears and the risk of low tolerability.