Human Factors in Enhancing Safety and User Experience in Virtual Environments

In virtual environments, user experience and safety are influenced by a multitude of factors that can significantly affect the efficacy of gaming or training programs. One such challenge is simulator sickness, an undesirable phenomenon with varying presence and intensity among individuals, even in similar simulator applications. The variability in these symptoms can be attributed to a broad range of factors. Our study aims to explore these variations, emphasizing factors that could either worsen or alleviate simulator sickness. In our experiment, thirty-nine participants underwent an 8-minute helicopter flight simulation, after which we collected their feedback using subjective measurements. We found a direct correlation between susceptibility to motion sickness and the occurrence of simulator sickness. Our results revealed that repetitive exposure to virtual environments is associated with a reduction in symptoms. However, prior driving experience did not exert a significant impact on simulator sickness. Furthermore, we observed that participants' dietary choices before the simulation may influence their virtual experience and overall safety. In summary, our findings suggest that previous exposure to virtual environments can reduce the occurrence of simulator sickness, while prior exposure to real-world environments does not appear to have a significant impact on this virtual experience. Moreover, our study suggests that dietary factors may play a role in the experience of simulator sickness in virtual environments. These findings highlight the need for further research to understand the extent and nature of these potential relationships, as they could offer valuable insights into mitigating simulator sickness, thereby improving safety and user experience in virtual reality settings.