Affective and Attentional States When Running in a Virtual Reality Environment

Abstract

Engaging in physical exercise in a virtual reality (VR) environment has been reported to improve physical effort and affective states. However, these conclusions might be influenced by experimental design factors, such as comparing VR environments against a non-VR environment without actively controlling for the presence of visual input in non-VR conditions. The present study addressed this issue to examine affective and attentional states in a virtual running task. Participants (n = 40), completed a 21 min run on a treadmill at 70% of Vmax. One group of participants ran in a computer-generated VR environment that included other virtual runners while another group ran while viewing neutral images. Participants in both conditions showed a pattern of reduced positive affect and increased tension during the run with a return to high positive affect after the run. In the VR condition, higher levels of immersive tendencies and attention/absorption in the virtual environment were associated with more positive affect after the run. In addition, participants in the VR condition focused attention more on external task-relevant stimuli and less to internal states than participants in the neutral images condition. However, the neutral images condition produced less negative affect and more enjoyment after the run than the VR condition. The finding suggest that the effects of exercising in a VR environment will depend on individual difference factors (e.g., attention/absorption in the virtual world) but it may not always be better than distracting attention away from exercise-related cues.

The Use of Virtual Reality to Influence Motivation, Affect, Enjoyment, and Engagement During Exercise: A Scoping Review

“…In a healthy population, Neumann and Moffitt (2018) found no difference in activation or valence (via the feeling scale and felt arousal scale) during treadmill running between groups receiving third person, computer-controlled agents ("other runners") or those receiving static, neutral images. Moreover, the VR "other runners" group actually reported greater negative affect subscale scores (via PAAS) than the neutral images group.…”

“…No other motivation subscale differences were seen between groups. Last, Neumann and Moffitt (2018) found no differences in motivation during treadmill running between a condition involving thirdperson computer-controlled agents ("other runners" going both faster and slower than the participant) and presentation of static images (low arousal and neutral valence).…”

“…However, both VR conditions resulted in greater enjoyment than the no-VR cycling condition. Neumann and Moffitt (2018) found that during treadmill running participants allocated to receiving static, neutrally valenced images actually had greater enjoyment than the group receiving third person, computer-controlled agents ("other runners"). The only study showing positive effects paired a competitive agent (via low immersive VR) with maximal intensity rowing.…”

“…Self-determination theory (Ryan and Deci, 2000) was used by Farrow et al (2019) and Shaw et al (2016); social comparison theory (Festinger, 1954) was used by Parton and Neumann (2019), with similar theories being used by Shaw et al (2016) via social facilitation theory (Zajonc and Sales, 1966) and Murray et al (2016) via the Köhler effect (Stroebe et al, 1996). Attentional focus theory (Wininger and Gieske, 2010) was used by Neumann and Moffitt (2018), Murray et al (2016), and Mestre et al (2011a), and social-cognitive theory (Bandura, 1989) was used by Fox and Bailenson (2009).…”

Virtual reality as a tool for promoting reading via enhanced narrative absorption and empathy

“…During these moments, the visual perception of the environment interferes with the imagination and emotions elicited by the story, either reinforcing or contrasting them. With respect to this, VR environments congruent with the activity performed have been shown to affect users' attention and performance differently from neutral images (Neumann & Moffitt, 2018;Schmidt et al, 2018). In other words, the VR space can function as a reading setting that isolates the reader from the distractions of the physical world (such as mobile phone notifications, people passing by, etc.…”