Can Simulator Sickness Be Avoided? A Review on Temporal Aspects of Simulator Sickness

Abstract

Simulator sickness is a syndrome similar to motion sickness, often experienced during simulator or another virtual reality (VR) exposure. Many theories have been developed or adapted from the motion sickness studies, in order to explain the existence of the syndrome. The simulator sickness can be measured using both subjective and objective methods. The most popular self-report method is the Simulator Sickness Questionnaire. Attempts have also been made to discover a physiological indicator of the described syndrome, but no definite conclusion has been reached on this issue. In the present paper, three temporal aspects of the simulator sickness are discussed: the temporal trajectory of the progression of simulator sickness, possibility of adapting VR users in advance and persistence of the symptoms after VR exposure. Evidence found in 39 articles is widely described. As for the first aspect, it is clear that in most cases severity of the simulator sickness symptoms increases with time of exposure, although it is impossible to develop a single, universal pattern for this effect. It has also been proved, that in some cases a threshold level or time point exists, after which the symptoms stop increasing or begin to decrease. The adaptation effect was proved in most of the reviewed studies and observed in different study designs – e.g., with a couple of VR exposures on separate days or on 1 day and with a single, prolonged VR exposure. As for the persistence of the simulator sickness symptoms after leaving the VR, on the whole the study results suggest that such an effect exists, but it varies strongly between individual studies – the symptoms may persist for a short period of time (10 min) or a relatively long one (even 4 h). Considering the conclusions reached in the paper, it is important to bear in mind that the virtual reality technology still evokes unpleasant sensations in its users and that these sensations should be cautiously controlled while developing new VR tools. Certainly, more research on this topic is necessary.

Factors Associated With Virtual Reality Sickness in Head-Mounted Displays: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

“…Interestingly scores were lower for studies that were equal to or >20 min than those equal to or >10 min (see Figure 3). This contradicts a recent summary in a review suggesting that longer exposure times are more likely to increase VR sickness (Duzmanska et al, 2018). Content may have been a factor contributing to this pattern of results within each of the time categories.…”

“…For example, research measuring VR sickness at multiple time points found symptoms increased at 2-min increments, with the highest VR sickness scores measured in the final trial at 10 min . In contrast, a recent review has found that some people may build up a resistance or adapt over time to VR sickness, particularly over multiple sessions (Duzmanska et al, 2018). Although content and duration are significant contributing factors that may increase the likelihood of sickness symptoms, the user also needs to be taken into consideration.…”

“…Despite advancements in virtual reality (VR) technology, many people still report experiencing simulator sickness symptoms from its use (Rebenitsch and Owen, 2016;Gavgani et al, 2017;Duzmanska et al, 2018;Guna et al, 2019). Characterizing and quantifying these symptoms is challenging, as several factors are at play including a diverse range of technologies; the use of inconsistent terminology for sickness from using virtual environments; little consensus on the biological mechanisms of symptoms; the diverse range of VR content; along with user characteristics such as age and sex (Hale and Stanney, 2014).…”

“…Length of time exposed to a virtual environment may also influence likelihood and severity of VR sickness (Duzmanska et al, 2018). Significant correlations have been found between exposure time and VR sickness, with longer exposure times increasing risk of VR sickness .…”

“…Previous reviews (Rebenitsch and Owen, 2016;Duzmanska et al, 2018;Kourtesis et al, 2019) have focused on temporal or technological aspects of VR sickness. To date, none of the reviews on VR sickness have systematically evaluated VR content and user characteristics in a meta-analysis.…”