Assessment of a Short, Focused Training to Reduce Symptoms of Cybersickness

Abstract

Past reports have suggested that active visual training in virtual reality (VR) can reduce symptoms of cybersickness. Here, we adapted such a protocol to a computer-based version and compared it with a passive exposure control condition. We employed heart rate and other subjective predictors of cybersickness to try to predict the efficacy of the intervention as well as likelihood of drop out. While we found a significant decrease in heart rate across sessions, the intervention we employed did not appear to be effective at reducing cybersickness or dropout. However, a heart rate increase of 15.5 bpm from baseline, nausea self-report of 4.5 on a scale of 1–10, and dizziness self-report of 5.5 on a scale of 1–10 predicted an equal probability of experiment dropout, independent of whether participants were in the experimental or control intervention condition. Our findings suggest that a single immersion of visual training in VR or passive VR exposure may not be sufficient to provide adaptation for VR. At the same time, our findings bolster past reports suggesting the value of employing heart rate monitoring, rather than subjective reports, to monitor the onset of cybersickness.