New dimensions in the assessment of virtual reality induced side effects exploring new dimensions in the assessment of virtual reality induced side effects

Two issues are increasingly of interests in the scientific literature regarding virtual reality induced unwanted side effects: (a) the latent structure of the Simulator Sickness Questionnaire (SSQ), and (b) the overlap between anxiety symptoms and unwanted side effects. Study 1 was conducted with a sample of 517 participants. A confirmatory factor analysis clearly supported a two-factor model composed of nausea and oculomotor symptoms. To tease-out symptoms of anxiety from negative side effects of immersion, Study 2 was conducted with 47 participants who were stressed without being immersed in virtual reality. Five of the 16 side effects correlated significantly with anxiety. In a third study conducted with 72 participants, the post-immersion scores of the SSQ and the State Anxiety scale were subjected to a factor analysis to detect items side effects that would load on the anxiety factor. The results converged with those of Study 2 and revealed that general discomfort and difficulty concentrating loaded significantly on the anxiety factor. The overall results support the notion that side effects consists mostly of a nausea and an oculomotor latent structure and that (only) a few items may reflect anxiety more than unwanted negative side effects.