An Analysis of the Sense of Presence and Cybersickness in Virtual Reality: The Influence of Content Type, Exposure Time, and Gender

As the adoption of XR progressively grows across diverse domains, it is paramount to delve into the factors that can affect the user experience while using XR technology. The purpose of this research was to understand the influence of content type, exposure time, and gender on presence and cybersickness within the context of virtual reality experiences. The evaluation was conducted with a sample of 20 participants who were randomly exposed to four content types: a digital game, a simulator, a synthetic cultural environment, and a 360-degree video. No significant changes regarding global presence were observed. However, upon analysing its subdimensions, the values indicate a correlation between content type and both spatial presence and experienced realism. Gender disparities were detected, with male participants considering the digital game less realistic compared to other content types, while female participants scored it on par with the others. Moreover, the total exposure time positively correlated with higher global presence for female participants, with a difference also being observed in terms of experienced realism. Regarding cybersickness, the correlation between gender and total exposure time indicated that female participants reported less cybersickness as exposure time increased. The research conducted, currently entering a second phase in which the same type of content will be tested across different head-mounted displays, has provided relevant results that are already being applied to other studies focused on virtual reality experiences, such as the therapeutic use of the technology by users diagnosed with phobias or neurocognitive disorders.