Methods for design, development and testing of virtual environments

Taxonomy of fidelity and validity and successful transfer of learning from VR

Correlation matrix (with Pearson correlation coefficients) between SIM-TLX subscales and overall workload measure

Virtual reality (VR) provides the potential for immersive and engaging training solutions for experimentation and training. However, if VR training is to be adopted and used in an effective and evidence-based fashion, more rigorous ways to test the validity of the simulation is required.

Construct validity is the degree to which the simulation provides an accurate representation of core features of the task. In the context of sport, if the training drills in the VR environment are a true representation of the skills needed in the real world, then those that excel at the sport in the real world should also excel in the virtual one. The same is true in a range of industries that are attempting to adopt VR for learning and training.

This line of work is developing methodologies and ideas surrounding the testing and validation of virtual reality simulations.

Publications

• Development and validation of a simulation workload measure: the simulation task load index (SIM-TLX)
• A Framework for the Testing and Validation of Simulated Environments in Experimentation and Training
• Testing the construct validity of a soccer-specific virtual reality simulator using novice, academy, and professional soccer players

Contact

For more information on this project, please contact Dr Sam Vine or Dr David Harris.