From awareness to skepticism: understanding VR adoption dynamics in engineering management

Purpose This study examines managers’ and professionals’ perceptions towards Virtual Reality (VR) adoption in engineering contexts and investigates the factors influencing awareness, willingness to implement, perceived benefits and limitations, and future outlook. Design/methodology/approach A quantitative approach was employed via a structured questionnaire administered to 56 managers and professionals from diverse engineering and managerial backgrounds. A multi-phase statistical analysis included the Categorical Principal Component Analysis (CATPCA) and Chi-squared Automatic Interaction Detector (CHAID) decision tree analysis. Findings VR awareness is primarily shaped by educational background, with technically trained professionals demonstrating higher awareness than those with advanced degrees. Beyond initial awareness, years of tenure emerge as the dominant predictor, positively influencing VR adoption intentions during an initial period of experience. However, longer tenure is also associated with increased skepticism regarding VR’s benefits and a more pessimistic future outlook. This effect is moderated by organizational size and participants’ age. Originality/value This research provides empirical insights into the challenges of VR adoption in engineering contexts, and offers practical guidance for organizations seeking to integrate immersive technologies. It contributes to technology acceptance literature and highlights the role of demographic and experiential factors in establishing VR implementation strategies.