Exploring the Impact of Passthrough on VR Exergaming in Public Environments: A Field Study

TL;DR

This study investigates how Passthrough functionality in VR headsets influences user performance, safety, and social acceptance during public VR exergaming, demonstrating its potential to promote health in real-world settings.

Contribution

First field study to evaluate Passthrough effects on VR exergaming in public environments, showing improved performance and social acceptance without reducing presence.

Findings

Passthrough improves user performance in public VR exergaming.

Passthrough increases social acceptance, especially among self-conscious users.

No significant impact on user presence was observed.

Abstract

Sedentary behavior is becoming increasingly prevalent in daily work and study environments. VR exergaming has emerged as a promising solution in these places of work and study. However, private spaces in these environments are not easy, and engaging in VR exergaming in public settings presents its own set of challenges (e.g., safety, social acceptance, isolation, and privacy protection). The recent development of Passthrough functionality in VR headsets allows users to maintain awareness of their surroundings, enhancing safety and convenience. Despite its potential benefits, little is known about how Passthrough could affect user performance and experience and solve the challenges of playing VR exergames in real-world public environments. To our knowledge, this work is the first to conduct a field study in an underground passageway on a university campus to explore the use of Passthrough in a real-world public environment, with a disturbance-free closed room as a baseline. Results indicate that enabling Passthrough in a public environment improves performance without compromising presence. Moreover, Passthrough can increase social acceptance, especially among individuals with higher levels of self-consciousness. These findings highlight Passthrough's potential to encourage VR exergaming adoption in public environments, with promising implications for overall health and well-being.