Abstract Augmented reality (AR) is an innovative tool in supporting hands-on tasks by allowing users to interact with holograms. Previous studies investigated differences between virtual and augmented holograms and between physical artifacts and hologram digital twins, leaving open how hologram-physical couplings shape participants’ experience. In this study, we explored the effects of physical artifacts and holograms under three hologram-physical coupling conditions (i.e., physical-only, hologram-only, and hybrid) on object presence (i.e., general presence, spatial presence, involvement, and realism), perceived overall workload (i.e., NASA task load index), and technology acceptance (i.e., perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, attitude toward using, and behavioral intention) during a hands-on task. Seventy-five participants, in a between-group study (N=25 per condition), experienced an AR application using a studio panel light with the Microsoft HoloLens 2. The results indicate that the hybrid condition received significantly higher ratings in object presence (i.e., general presence, spatial presence, involvement, and realism) and in most technology acceptance variables (i.e., perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, and behavioral intention). Our findings suggest that holograms may be perceived more positively when they augment rather than replace physical artifacts, offering a hybrid design that provides richer visual and sensory cues for task-relevant information.
Abstract Handheld virtual reality offers a promising approach for fostering engagement in informal learning environments, providing safe, shared, and inclusive experiences. This study examined how children engage with a handheld VR-based educational program, Solar System Explorer, and aimed to identify behavioral patterns and design considerations that support meaningful engagement in a museum setting. Across three showcase days, 53 children interacted with six virtual planetary scenes using handheld tablets in small, docent-guided groups. Five and half hours of video data were analyzed to capture physical, intellectual, emotional, and social engagement. Our analysis revealed that engagement was shaped by several key features of the experience, including room-scale exploration, the ability to share viewpoints, the visibility of peers’ reactions, and opportunities for personal content creation. The results highlight how handheld VR can promote active, collaborative, and emotionally positive participation in informal learning contexts and offer empirically grounded design implications for developing scalable and inclusive educational VR experiences.
Abstract This contribution positions perceptual and behavioral traits of long-term Social VR users as acculturated instead of predetermined, outlining developments in which newcomers to platforms such as VRChat become power users over time. Grounded on 32 semi-structured interviews as well as observational data derived from a four-year life-world-analytical ethnography, processes of ‘becoming’ are described and analyzed from a phenomenological and interactionist angle. Sociologist Howard S. Becker’s writings serve as the theoretical basis for this text – in particular his paper ‘Becoming a Marihuana User’. Analytical findings suggest that newcomers to VRChat adapt to perceptual and behavioral concepts of established communities over time. Long-term users impart to their peers the ability to emphasize (inter-)corporality in their social encounters when embodying avatars. Furthermore, enthusiast users contextualize the phenomenal experience of intense Social VR use for newcomers, mitigating the negative impacts of invasive perceptual phenomena, such as sensory mismatches or phantom sensations. By collectively mitigating major hurdles to prolonged VR-use, VRChat users slowly acclimate to extremely long VR-sessions, develop resilience to motion sickness and ultimately become able to engage their platform as a genuine social site – traits that initially differentiated them from power users.
Abstract Contrary to the discourse on the dehumanization induced by digital technology, we show that VRET [virtual reality exposure therapy] introduces a renewed focus on the sensitive dimensions of care by reconfiguring the conditions under which therapeutic work is carried out. This dispositif creates a new therapeutic place in the form of a unique virtual territory coconstructed by the therapist and the patient. The description of concrete situations of consumption, with details of objects, places, and gestures, provides access to the patient’s intimacy through the ordinary. This immersion combines a cartographic and biographical approach. It fosters a distinctive therapeutic approach that transcends theoretical divisions. This virtual territory operates as a stage where emotion becomes a therapeutic target. The logics of conditioning and experimentation are reappropriated to engage the patient in an emotional work. This work involves enduring temptation to regulate craving and remembering beautiful things to reconfigure everyday life without addiction.
Abstract With recent advancements in technology, augmented reality (AR) systems are now capable of providing practical shared experiences offering new ways to work, socialize, and play together. While previous research has explored systems for asynchronous collaboration, studies focusing on real-time co-located synchronous collaboration where two or more users perform the same task together in tandem remain limited. Additionally when users are working in shared collaborative environments together, the level of symmetry to their movements (i.e., symmetric motions in their paired coordination) and the requirements for asymmetry (i.e., individualize motions within the collaboration) is presently underexplored. Therefore while highly immersive, realistic collaborative XR systems can be created, it is unclear how the symmetry provided by the system, notably in the collaborative interaction paradigms, should be designed to optimize user experience and task performance. To address this, we present a formal user study of two common AR interaction paradigms which offer varying levels of symmetry in a paired task. We explore Grasp (symmetric) and AirTap (asymmetric) within a bi-manual, co-located manipulation task where users (n = 32) in pairs (n = 16) complete a collaborative AR docking task. To illustrate the level of successful collaboration and user experience, we report on multiple metrics, notably task completion time, spatial accuracy, errors (drops in interaction), team workload and usability. Furthermore to explore user opinion and negate the over reliance on post study user questionnaires, we apply a sentiment analysis process directly to the communication between user pairs during the collaborative task. This supports a richer exploration of user positive or negative sentiment between the Grasp (symmetric) and AirTap (asymmetric) conditions. Results demonstrate that the level of symmetry offered by the interaction paradigm (Grasp and AirTap) presents significant differences in collaborative performance, team workload and usability while maintaining comparable task spatial accuracy. Task performance is found to be lower with grasping interactions which required greater symmetry between user motions and actions and resulted in longer completion times and higher collaborative effort. Sentiment of the paired user communication further highlighted a more reliable collaboration in the asymmetric (AirTap) condition. These findings align to prior work assessing asymmetry in interaction and therefore support the suggestion that symmetric interaction methods (Grasp), while intuitive, may hinder coordination and increase cognitive demands paired collaboration. We recommend that AR researchers and designers of collaborative virtual environments consider introducing levels of controlled asymmetry in interaction paradigms to better support user performance.
Abstract In virtual reality (VR) interface design, button size, and spacing are key design elements. This study investigated these two factors in the context of Fitts' Law within a VR on-demand media preview two-dimensional (2D) interface, assessing both objective performance and subjective perceptions. A convenience sample of 72 participants completed a 2 (large, small button size) × 3 (small, medium, large button spacing) between-subjects factorial experiment. The collected data were analyzed using a two-factor analysis of variance (ANOVA). The results indicated that: (1) small spacing demonstrated shorter task completion times, consistent with Fitts' Law; (2) the button size across all tasks and the spacing used in the sequential clicking tasks showed no significant effects, suggesting that large buttons may lead to inconsistencies with Fitts' Law due to target size saturation, target utilization (uneven distributions of movement endpoints), and task specifications; (3) medium spacing resulted in higher subjective preference perception than small spacing; (4) combinations of small spacing with small size and medium or large spacing with large sizes, received the highest preference perception; and (5) perceived NASA-RTLX workload was higher for large spacing than for medium and small spacing, consistent with Fitts' Law. This study identifies where Fitts' Law holds and where it breaks down or saturates for large 2D media preview buttons in VR, informing improvements in interface usability.
Abstract Immersive virtual reality (VR) environments have been considered a promising future platform for collaboration. However, recent research has also identified difficulties in tracking coparticipants’ availability for interaction in them. In this study, we examine how members of a work team establish reciprocity and mutual availability to see and/or hear each other in VR in order to begin their work. In other words, we investigate how these participants establish ‘interactional space’. The data are video- and screen-recorded meetings organized in VR. We use Ethnomethodology and Conversation Analysis to study the formation of an interactional space through participants’ talk and embodied actions as they unfold moment by moment. Our analysis reveals recurring aspects that participants orient to when establishing an interactional space during arrivals in the same virtual space. The study highlights how mutual access between participants is not merely something that is accomplished but something that must be actively maintained and adjusted in VR. We summarize our observations into a processual model that illustrates the interactional work required to build interactional space in VR.
Abstract This study explored how individual differences in self-reported sensory processing for 40 participants influenced susceptibility to simulator sickness (SS) while in virtual reality (VR). Participants completed multiple questionnaires to evaluate these traits before being exposed to the VR experience Boneworks for 20 minutes. An SS questionnaire was also completed before and after exposure to VR to evaluate a change from baseline. It was expected that those high in sensory processing sensitivity would be more susceptible to SS due to an enhanced detection of and reaction to the sensory conflicts that occur when experiencing VR. However, no relationship was found between levels of sensory processing sensitivity and increased SS symptoms. On the other hand, significant relations were found between more behaviourally active, sensory-processing-related traits like sensation seeking, sensory avoidance, the Behavioural Activation System (BAS), and Extraversion. That is, sensation seeking, BAS, and Extraversion were all positively correlated, and sensation avoidance negatively correlated with SS symptoms. Hence, the results suggest that those who sought more stimulation were more likely to experience SS while those more avoidant were less likely. Additionally, we found a negative correlation between reported usability of the VR experience and SS symptoms, indicating those who found the VR experience easier to control were less likely to have SS symptoms.
Abstract Global events, including pandemics and geopolitical conflicts, have catalyzed a fundamental reevaluation of remote collaboration paradigms across training, technical assistance, maintenance, and educational domains. While conventional video conferencing technologies have achieved widespread adoption, significant potential remains for advancing augmented reality (AR)-based remote collaboration methodologies. Though hand-drawn AR annotations (AAS) remain prevalent for visual instruction delivery, their inherent informality often proves insufficient for conveying precise operational directives in industrial contexts. Consequently, multimodal verbal communication emerges as a critical compensatory mechanism to resolve ambiguities and mitigate linguistic barriers. This research introduces a novel Spatial AR (SAR) remote collaboration platform designed to bridge this communication gap through an Adaptive Transformation of Instructions (ATI) methodology. The proposed system enables dynamic conversion of freehand annotations into standardized symbolic representations, thereby enhancing instructional clarity and fostering universal comprehension. A rigorous formative user study was conducted to evaluate the platform's efficacy across multiple dimensions: task completion time, annotation complexity, subjective collaborative experience, system usability (via standardized rankings), and user preference metrics. Results demonstrate statistically significant improvements in user experience when ATI-based cues are integrated into remote collaborative training scenarios. Beyond practical implications, this work provides actionable insights for future investigations into AR-mediated remote collaboration within technical training environments.
Presence is a central concept in virtual reality (VR) research but is most often assessed using post-experience questionnaires that are subjective and susceptible to bias. Behavioral measures may offer a complementary, objective perspective on presence, particularly when examined in relation to specific situational demands. Rather than attempting to validate postural control as a global measure of presence, this paper explores whether postural responses show promise as a stimulus-evoked behavioral correlate of presence in an immersive virtual environment. Participants stood wearing a head-mounted display while viewing a VR-based construction site in which walls and ceiling elements moved toward the user, while postural responses were recorded using motion capture. Trunk sway magnitude and direction were quantified and compared to quiet stance, and subjective presence was assessed following each trial. Results showed greater postural sway during many virtual events relative to baseline, with moderate but non-significant associations with self-reported presence. Although limited by a small sample size, these exploratory findings highlight the potential and limitations of postural control as a context-dependent indicator of presence and are intended to stimulate further methodological discussion.
This study investigates students' lived experiences of 360 degrees exam videos designed to simulate test anxiety in high school students preparing for university entrance exams. Adopting a phenomenological design, individual interviews were conducted with nine students to explore their subjective experiences of immersion, realism, and emotional intensity. Data were analyzed through content analysis. The findings indicate that exposure to 360 degrees videos was associated with students' reports of a strong sense of realism and "being in an exam" in the mediated environment. Participants reported that the videos triggered anxiety symptoms similar to real exams and increased emotional engagement, particularly in students with higher baseline anxiety. Key limitations include the small sample size and the lack of interactivity in the video format. Reproducing high-stakes exam conditions for in vivo exposure is challenging. Our findings highlight 360 degrees exam videos as an accessible alternative to elicit exam-related experiential responses under controlled conditions. Importantly, this qualitative phenomenological study does not test clinical efficacy or anxiety reduction; rather, it informs design considerations and motivates future quantitative efficacy research.
Augmented reality (AR) has emerged as a promising tool for enhancing engagement and interactivity in second language learning. Yet, empirical evidence on how learners actually engage with AR-based tasks and how such engagement fosters meaningful language development remains limited. This qualitative case study explores university students' experiences with an AR-enhanced English learning environment, focusing on the mechanisms that promote sustained engagement and self-directed learning. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews and classroom observations during a twelve-week course integrating AR activities for vocabulary, pronunciation, and communicative practice. Thematic analysis revealed three key engagement patterns: (1) contextualized interaction, where students connected linguistic input to real-world contexts through multimodal prompts; (2) iterative self-correction, as learners used visual and auditory feedback to refine pronunciation and meaning; and (3) motivational persistence, with gamified and immersive elements that maintained interest beyond traditional task completion. However, learners also highlighted cognitive overload and technical barriers as potential drawbacks. Overall, AR served not as a novelty but as a scaffold that supported deeper cognitive engagement and autonomy when pedagogically integrated. The study concludes with recommendations for designing balanced AR-supported environments that align technological features with language learning outcomes and calls for longitudinal research to examine the durability of such engagement effects.
This pilot study introduces an innovative approach to researching time perception in virtual reality (VR) by utilizing the Neos Metaverse Engine to design an experimental setup. Participants engaged in trials to assess how Euclidean and non-Euclidean (equi-affine) geometries affect time perception by observing a dot moving along an elliptical trajectory with varying velocity profiles. The study highlights the potential of VR technology, emphasizing the benefits of developing and running the experimental setup within the Neos Metaverse environment, including its built-in tools that facilitate rapid prototyping, iterative design processes, instant feedback, avatar customization options, a comprehensive inventory system, and versatile export capabilities. The findings demonstrate the feasibility and advantages of using a VR-based system for time perception research, paving the way for more immersive and ecologically valid studies. This method offers a robust framework for future investigations into the influence of geometric properties on retrospective time perception in virtual environments.
This study investigates how spatial proximity and particulate matter (PM) concentration in virtual reality (VR) influence individuals' preventive and mitigation intentions toward fine dust exposure. In a 2 & times; 2 between-subjects experiment (N = 82), spatial proximity increased behavioral intention, while PM concentration had no significant effect. Psychological distance mediated the effect of spatial proximity, but not PM concentration. Furthermore, the analysis revealed significant moderated mediation effects, indicating that the mediating role of psychological distance between spatial proximity and mitigation behavioral intention was evident only among individuals with lower levels of self-efficacy and response efficacy. These findings suggest that VR-based risk messages should emphasize spatial cues that reduce psychological distance, as such cues can enhance users' behavioral intentions by making threats feel more immediate and personally relevant. Notably, the indirect effect of spatial proximity on mitigation behavioral intention via psychological distance emerged only among individuals with lower levels of self-efficacy and response efficacy, highlighting the importance of tailoring risk communication strategies to individuals with diminished efficacy beliefs.
This systematic review analyzes the synergistic integration of Digital Twin (DT), Augmented Reality (AR), and Internet of Things (IoT) technologies within aquaponics systems. Following PRISMA 2020 guidelines, we identified and analyzed studies from IEEE Xplore and Scopus (2019-2024). The review reveals that while IoT is widely adopted, the integration of DT and AR remains fragmented, failing to function as a coordinated presence medium. The analysis identifies a critical theoretical gap: the lack of unified frameworks that align sensing, simulation, and experience. By failing to connect real-time IoT data directly into DT simulations for AR visualization, current systems increase the cognitive distance between raw data and physical action. Most existing solutions operate in isolation, resulting in systems that are computationally advanced yet experientially shallow. This paper synthesizes current architectural patterns, identifies interoperability and latency as primary technical barriers, and proposes a future research agenda focused on modular, open-standard architectures to enhance the efficiency and user-accessibility of smart aquaponics.
Social virtual reality (SVR) allows real individuals to communicate and engage in simulated physical environments and activities. These systems simultaneously afford social and physical presence. However, the precise nature of various presence states in SVR is unclear. This study addresses this conceptual gap through interviews with SVR users and interpretative phenomenological analysis of the individual responses. This research shows that physical and social presence are only occasionally co-experienced; presence in SVR often depends on the individual experiences/backgrounds, perceived affordances, or specific goal of technology use. These findings contribute to a deeper understanding of presence and its dynamic nature in SVR shaped by the users' individual experiences. This facilitates how we will study and measure presence in SVR in the future.
Cybersickness, including simulation sickness, remains one of the major obstacles to the widespread adoption of virtual reality (VR) and driving simulation technologies. While many mitigation strategies have been proposed, their effectiveness often remains inconsistent across users. In this study, a dynamic visual reference is introduced that aims to reduce cybersickness by encouraging voluntary head movements during input-driven rotations, thereby minimizing sensory conflict between visual and vestibular cues. The system continuously monitors discrepancies between the virtual camera's rotation and the user's head motion and provides dynamic feedback to the users to realign their head orientation with the direction of virtual rotation. To evaluate its effectiveness, a within-subjects experiment was conducted involving 24 participants, comparing with and without the visual reference conditions, using the Simulator Sickness Questionnaire (SSQ). Results showed statistically significant reductions in total SSQ scores as well as in the nausea, oculomotor, and disorientation subscales, with large effect sizes across all measures. Moreover, task performance remained unaffected in the presence of the visual reference, indicating that the system alleviated discomfort without impairing user interaction.
In fields such as pedagogy, psychology, and sociology, constructing a meaningful context is considered essential to exploring experiential modes. This study employs 3D virtual scene construction and virtual roaming technology, grounded in contextual learning theory and Lefebvre's spatial theory, to create multiform 3D virtual spaces for learning and experiencing the cultural heritage site Wanfutai. These spaces include material form space (MFS), cultural form space (CFS), and psychological form space (PFS). Through a desktop virtual engine system, users can explore the multiform 3D virtual space from a first-person perspective, learning about the appearance, internal structure, and cultural characteristics of Wanfutai. To investigate users' learning effects and their cognitive, affective, and behavioral performances, this study conducted a teaching experiment with 120 students, who were equally divided into three groups. Each group participated in one form of 3D virtual space experience (MFS, CFS, PFS) and underwent pre- and post-experiment assessments. Additionally, three questionnaires were administered to evaluate their performances. The experiment results showed that all three forms of 3D virtual space enhanced learning effects. The cognitive outcomes mirrored the learning effects. However, the affective and behavioral levels of the three showed distinct patterns. The study found that the multiform 3D virtual space system not only popularizes relevant knowledge but also enhances understanding, increases interest, and stimulates exploration. Therefore, it is an effective method to promote the protection and dissemination of cultural heritage sites.
The perceptual sensation of virtual embodiment can improve the immersion in a virtual reality experience. However, research about how to increase the feeling of embodiment is scarce and proposes resources such eye tracking, realistic avatars, and hand tracking. We argue that the user's involvement with the story can enhance their corporeal experience in the virtual world without any sophisticated technical resources. More specifically, this interdisciplinary study proposes narrative focalization as the main tool to increase virtual embodiment, that is, knowing more about the character. To test this hypothesis, different multisensory and interactive narrative resources are tested to foster focalization and cultivate identification with the character. We developed two versions of an interactive virtual experience: one in which the user knows more about the character and a neutral one. The comparative results confirm that the more the user knows about their character, the higher their sense of virtual embodiment is.
With the rapid development of personal computers and the Internet, there is growing interest in leveraging technology to support collaboration and cooperative learning. However, conventional cooperative learning methods often lack real-time monitoring and personalized guidance from teachers, which can result in suboptimal learning outcomes and poor cooperation quality. While the immersive virtual environments has shown promise in various domains, its application in education, especially in cooperative learning, remains underexplored. This study aims to address this gap by integrating ARCS (Attention, Relevance, Confidence, Satisfaction) strategies into a secondary school geography curriculum, using cooperative learning strategies supported by an immersive virtual environment. A quasi-experimental design was employed, with 70 middle school students from eastern China participating in activities within an immersive virtual environment. The results demonstrated that the immersive virtual environments-based ARCS instructional strategy significantly improved students' academic achievement, motivation for cooperative learning, and the quality of their collaborative interactions. Furthermore, the study explored the cooperative learning behaviors of high-achieving and low-achieving students, recording and coding their behaviors within the immersive virtual environment. The findings revealed that high-achieving students exhibited stronger self-regulation compared to their lowachieving peers, who may require additional learning scaffolding for better engagement and performance.
