How did you feel during the navigation? Influence of emotions on browsing time and interaction frequency in immersive virtual environments

Immersive virtual environments (IVEs) represent virtual settings that simulate the physical world. Users interacting in such virtual venues commonly display behaviours like the ones that would occur in the physical world. However, little is known about how the affective states experienced while browsing IVEs may in turn, influence user’s interactive behaviour. The present research investigates how the affect in terms of arousal and valence generated by IVEs influences browsing time and interaction frequency. Three studies analyse various facets of affect in IVEs. Study 1 investigates the cognitive responses and shows that browsing time is positively affected by self-reported arousal. Study 2 analyses neurophysiological responses and demonstrates consistent results with Study 1. It further shows that physiological correlates of arousal and valence positively influence interaction frequency. Study 3 delves into personal interest, a recurring factor emerged in the two previous studies, and investigates its interaction with arousal. Findings show that in a high arousal IVE, highly interested users are more likely to browse longer than low-interested users. Overall, the results show that behavioural realism evoked in IVEs involves both users’ actions and affective states. Implications in terms of design guidelines to foster positive affect in IVEs are drawn.