The Psychology of Virtual Reality

Virtual reality An immersive multimedia experience  Games  Training in a simulator  Exploration of environments  Remote control/ robotics  Therapy  (many other potential applications as well)

Virtual Reality Three fundamental ideas (da Costa et al.)  Immersion  Interaction  Presence

Virtual reality Immersive computer graphics, contingent on user’s behavior Head-mounted display (often) Synchronized sounds (usually) Synchronized proprioceptive feedback (sometimes: motion, tactile output) Moving air; smells (rarely)

Readings Virtual city for cognitive rehabilitation Overcoming phobias by virtual exposure Virtual reality treatment in acrophobia: A comparison with exposure in vivo Exploratory design and evaluation of a user interface for virtual reality exposure therapy

VR Education & Rehabilitation By Inman, Loge, & Leavens Goal: to train disabled children to use motorized wheelchairs

Problems Achieving realistic crashes Achieving realistic stops and starts Limitations in resolution - tradeoff between speed and realism Motivation problems (learned helplessness)

3 training scenarios: Simple world with no obstacles Interesting, grassy place with objects and places to get stuck in Traffic intersection

Other applications of VR Cognitive rehabilitation  Overcoming phobias  Training (pilots, soldiers, astronauts, first responders, etc.)

Human factors issues: What can go wrong with virtual reality?

Simulator Sickness (Schroder) A feeling of sickness resulting from exposure to a computer-generated space. the part inherent to the stimulus itself, present even if the simulation were a perfect representation of the real world the part that results from an imperfect simulation, for instance due to lag, poor inter-ocular adjust, poor resolution, etc

Simulator Sickness Types of symptom: Nausea Oculomotor Disorientation

Simulator Sickness Questionnaire Fatigue Headache Eyestrain Difficulty focusing Increased salivation Difficulty concentrating Fullness of head Blurred vision Dizziness Vertigo Stomach awarenesss Burping Rate for severity: none, slight, moderate, severe

Relative severity of symptoms: Disorientation, Nausea, Oculomotor Virtual environments:D>N>O Space sickness:O>D>N Simulator sickness:O>N>D Sea/airsickness:N>D>O Virtual environment (e.g., head-mounted display) scores tend to be higher and reported by more users.

Adapting to Virtual Environments People do adapt (become less sick) But they must re-adapt upon returning to the “real world” To what extent do aftereffects go away?  Postural stability, hand-eye coordination, visual functioning

User initiated control Active motion is better than being a passive observer in VE But moving about with no constraints can be overwhelming also Coupled control minimizes cybersickness - task constrains motion Allow users several sessions to adjust

Health and safety issues (Viire) Visual changes are temporary in adults Alignment is critical for stereo images Focus is constant in stereoscopic HMD, whereas it shifts in a real environment How should an object look when you get close to it?

Other dangers Loud sounds (well understood) Injury due to not seeing real environment Flicker vertigo or migraine Psychological: If VR can have positive effects (helping with phobias), it can probably desensitize people to other things also (such as violence).

Conclusions: Virtual Realty Useful for training in dangerous environments or for learning in infeasible environments Can be used to systematically desensitize phobias Can be used in rehabilitation (but beware of cybersickness!)  adjust gradually w/ breaks  warn of possible effects  give user control of motion  constrain environment

The Cutting Edge Virtual Human Interaction Lab  Avatar Identity  Transformed Social Interaction  Haptic Communication  Massively Multiplayer Online Gaming  Eyewitness Testimony & Police Lineups VirtuSphere  the_new_virtual_reality.htm