Cybersickness in Virtual Reality Head-Mounted Displays: Examining the Influence of Sex Differences, Vehicle Control and Postural Precursors

Abstract

The auspicious future of virtual reality could be thwarted by cybersickness.Cybersickness can be thought of as a subset of motion sickness and like motion sickness is more common among women than among men. Additionally, motion sickness is more common among passengers than among drivers. In this dissertation research, it was asked whether these two effects might interact. In a yoked-control design using a head-mounted display, one member of each pair drove a virtual automobile, while the other member watched a recording of the driver’s performance. In Chapter 2, it is explored whether such an interaction existed and the overall rates of cybersickness amongst these two groups. Previous research has shown that the subjective experience of cybersickness often is preceded by distinctive patterns of movement. In Chapter 3, it is examined whether such postural precursors of cybersickness might exist before participants were exposed to a virtual driving game presented. In this chapter, participants standing body sway was gathered while participants performed simple visual tasks (staring at a blank page vs. counting target letters in a block of text). In Chapter 4, movement of the head and torso was recorded while participants were exposed to a driving video while seated. These three chapters further inform the current understanding of cybersickness, and whether certain factors of the virtual environment may increase the likelihood of individuals becoming cybersick. Furthermore, chapters 3 and 4 further explore whether movement data can be used as an objective predictor in cybersickness research. If movement data further proves to be an objective predictor then this approach can be one iii of many approaches to assuage cybersickness for highly susceptible individuals.