Engagement in a Virtual Reality Game with Gesture Hand Interface. An Empirical Evaluation of User Engagement Scale (UES)

Abstract Background High quality head-mounted display based virtual reality (HMD-VR) has become widely available, spurring greater development of HMD-VR health games. As a behavior change approach, these applications use HMD-VR and game-based formats to support long-term engagement with therapeutic interventions. While the bulk of research to date has primarily focused on the therapeutic efficacy of particular HMD-VR health games, how developers and researchers incorporate best-practices in game design to achieve engaging experiences remains underexplored. This paper presents the findings of a narrative review exploring the trends and future directions of game design for HMD-VR health games. Methods We searched the literature on the intersection between HMD-VR, games, and health in databases including MEDLINE, Embase, CINAHL, PsycINFO, and Compendex. We identified articles describing HMD-VR games designed specifically as health applications from 2015 onwards in English. HMD-VR health games were charted and tabulated according to technology, health context, outcomes, and user engagement in game design. Findings We identified 29 HMD-VR health games from 2015 to 2020, with the majority addressing health contexts related to physical exercise, motor rehabilitation, and pain. These games typically involved obstacle-based challenges and extrinsic reward systems to engage clients in interventions related to physical functioning and pain. Less common were games emphasizing narrative experiences and non-physical exercise interventions. However, discourse regarding game design was diverse and often lacked sufficient detail. Game experience was evaluated using primarily ad-hoc questionnaires. User engagement in the development of HMD-VR health games primarily manifested as user studies. Conclusion HMD-VR health games are promising tools for engaging clients in highly immersive experiences designed to address diverse health contexts. However, more in-depth and structured attention to how HMD-VR health games are designed as game experiences is needed. Future development of HMD-VR health games may also benefit from greater involvement of end-users in participatory approaches.

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Investigating Age-Related Differences in Spatial Presence in Virtual Reality

Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society Annual Meeting ◽

10.1177/1541931218621404 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 62 (1) ◽

pp. 1782-1786 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Sean A. McGlynn ◽

Ranjani M. Sundaresan ◽

Wendy A. Rogers

Keyword(s):

Virtual Reality ◽

Conceptual Model ◽

Virtual Environment ◽

Empirical Evaluation ◽

Well Being ◽

Psychological Aspects ◽

Spatial Presence ◽

Age Related ◽

Potential Applications ◽

Perceptual Abilities

Virtual reality (VR) has potential applications for promoting physical, cognitive, and socio-emotional well-being for users of all ages. The ability for individuals to develop a sense of being physically located in the virtual environment, referred to as spatial presence, is often an essential component of successful VR applications. Thus, it is necessary to understand the psychological aspects of the spatial presence process and identify methods of measuring presence formation and maintenance. This in-progress study addresses gaps in the spatial presence literature through an empirical evaluation of a conceptual model of spatial presence, which emphasizes users’ characteristics and abilities. Age will serve as a proxy for changes in a variety of presence-relevant cognitive and perceptual abilities. The results will have implications for the design of VR systems and applications and for selecting individuals best-suited for these applications.

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Applicability of the User Engagement Scale to Mobile Health: A Survey-Based Quantitative Study

JMIR mhealth and uhealth ◽

10.2196/13244 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 8 (1) ◽

pp. e13244 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Marianne Holdener ◽

Alain Gut ◽

Alfred Angerer

Keyword(s):

Mobile Health ◽

Mobile Apps ◽

Principal Component ◽

Focused Attention ◽

User Engagement ◽

Aesthetic Appeal ◽

Health Apps ◽

Perceived Usability ◽

Sum Scores ◽

Engagement Scale

Background There has recently been exponential growth in the development and use of health apps on mobile phones. As with most mobile apps, however, the majority of users abandon them quickly and after minimal use. One of the most critical factors for the success of a health app is how to support users’ commitment to their health. Despite increased interest from researchers in mobile health, few studies have examined the measurement of user engagement with health apps. Objective User engagement is a multidimensional, complex phenomenon. The aim of this study was to understand the concept of user engagement and, in particular, to demonstrate the applicability of a user engagement scale (UES) to mobile health apps. Methods To determine the measurability of user engagement in a mobile health context, a UES was employed, which is a psychometric tool to measure user engagement with a digital system. This was adapted to Ada, developed by Ada Health, an artificial intelligence–powered personalized health guide that helps people understand their health. A principal component analysis (PCA) with varimax rotation was conducted on 30 items. In addition, sum scores as means of each subscale were calculated. Results Survey data from 73 Ada users were analyzed. PCA was determined to be suitable, as verified by the sampling adequacy of Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin=0.858, a significant Bartlett test of sphericity (χ2300=1127.1; P<.001), and communalities mostly within the 0.7 range. Although 5 items had to be removed because of low factor loadings, the results of the remaining 25 items revealed 4 attributes: perceived usability, aesthetic appeal, reward, and focused attention. Ada users showed the highest engagement level with perceived usability, with a value of 294, followed by aesthetic appeal, reward, and focused attention. Conclusions Although the UES was deployed in German and adapted to another digital domain, PCA yielded consistent subscales and a 4-factor structure. This indicates that user engagement with health apps can be assessed with the German version of the UES. These results can benefit related mobile health app engagement research and may be of importance to marketers and app developers.

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User Engagement Scale--Short Form

PsycTESTS Dataset ◽

10.1037/t67720-000 ◽

2018 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Heather L. O'Brien ◽

Paul Cairns ◽

Mark Hall

Keyword(s):

Short Form ◽

User Engagement ◽

Engagement Scale

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Galvanic Skin Response As a Measure of Engagement During Play in Virtual Reality

Volume 1: Adaptive/Intelligent Sys. Control; Driver Assistance/Autonomous Tech.; Control Design Methods; Nonlinear Control; Robotics; Assistive/Rehabilitation Devices; Biomedical/Neural Systems; Building Energy Systems; Connected Vehicle Systems; Control/Estimation of Energy Systems; Control Apps.; Smart Buildings/Microgrids; Education; Human-Robot Systems; Soft Mechatronics/Robotic Components/Systems; Energy/Power Systems; Energy Storage; Estimation/Identification; Vehicle Efficiency/Emissions ◽

10.1115/dscc2020-3177 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Roni Barak Ventura ◽

Maurizio Porfiri

Keyword(s):

Virtual Reality ◽

Galvanic Skin Response ◽

User Engagement ◽

Experimental Setting ◽

Information Theoretic ◽

Emotional Processes ◽

Skin Response ◽

Series Of Experiments ◽

Under Performing ◽

Physiological Correlate

Abstract Competition is a common design strategy used to enhance user engagement and participation. However, it remains unclear how winning or losing might influence player’s engagement. In a recent study, we used behavioral metrics to quantify player engagement during competitive gameplay in virtual reality. To control for players’ status of winning or losing, we programmed a virtual opponent to either under-perform, over-perform, or tie with them. We conducted a series of experiments and found that players’ engagement was higher when they were losing, compared to when they played alone. Nevertheless, players’ engagement did not change during competition with an under-performing or equally-performing opponent. By applying the information-theoretic notion of transfer entropy, we unveiled a causal relationships between relative performance and engagement, whereby players monitored the scores and adapted their behavior accordingly. However, behavioral metrics are not detached from volition and may be influenced by confounding factors. This limitation is addressed by the use of physiological metrics, which offer largely unbiased measurements of cognitive and emotional processes. In the present study, we sought to strengthen our prior findings by measuring engagement with a physiological correlate. We conducted experiments in the same experimental setting and we measured players’ galvanic skin response during competition. We discovered that players’ skin conductance was higher when they were outperformed by their opponent, indicating that they were experiencing less flow. The results inform the design of technology-mediated applications toward sustaining user engagement and participation.

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