Exploring Student Attention in the Metaverse: A Systematic Literature Review from the Perspective of Design and Ergonomics

This study aimed to provide a comprehensive overview of distance and immersive education’s state of the art, specifically focusing on the metaverse in conjunction with ergonomics, design, educational environments, virtual reality, and attention. Conducted as a Systematic Literature Review (SLR) following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) method, the research targeted theoretical and methodological concepts, as well as methods and tools relevant to a thesis developed at the Federal University of Pernambuco. Searches were conducted across seven databases and additional sources, applying filters for peer-reviewed articles published in English, Portuguese, and Spanish in the last two decades (2003–2023). Exclusion criteria involved repeated works without focusing on key themes, research focusing on People with Disabilities (PwD), and studies exclusively addressing the metaverse. Sixteen keyword combinations were utilized, generating an initial pool of 6,161 papers. After a thorough screening, 45 studies were selected and classified into two groups. Group 1 focused on Metaverse and Virtual Reality in education. Group 2 highlighted Ergonomics in the Virtual Environment, and Metaverse applied to the social and educational context. However, the research identified a gap in scientific knowledge at the intersection of Metaverse, Attention, and Educational Environment from the perspectives of Ergonomics and Design Science Research.