Effects of proprioceptive feedback and environmental characteristics on spatial learning in virtual environments

The effect of proprioceptive information and environmental characteristics on spatial learning was investigated when participants repeatedly navigated complex three-dimensional virtual mazes. Proprioceptive information, provided by viewing the mazes using a head-mounted display, was found to have li...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:International journal of human-computer studies 2004-03, Vol.60 (3), p.299-326
Main Authors: Ruddle, Roy A, Péruch, Patrick
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Computers
Feedback
Human-computer interaction
User interface
Virtual learning environments
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:The effect of proprioceptive information and environmental characteristics on spatial learning was investigated when participants repeatedly navigated complex three-dimensional virtual mazes. Proprioceptive information, provided by viewing the mazes using a head-mounted display, was found to have little effect. The primary environmental characteristics were layout orthogonality (using paths that intersected at either oblique or 90° angles), lines of sight (controlled using computer-generated “fog”), a visually defined perimeter and global landmarks. Participants travelled less far in orthogonal than oblique environments, even when fog was used to make the distance that participants could see equivalent. The removal of fog caused a further, substantial reduction in the distance participants travelled, indicating the importance of extended lines of sight, as predicted by the architectural theory of space syntax. Global landmarks promoted a similar rate of spatial learning to a visual perimeter.
ISSN:1071-5819
1095-9300
DOI:10.1016/j.ijhcs.2003.10.001