Virtual Transcendent Dream: Empowering People through Embodied Flying in VR

Document Title

Virtual Transcendent Dream: Empowering People through Embodied Flying in Virtual Reality

Document Information

• Subject Area: Transcendent experiences in virtual reality and user perception design
• Keywords: Dream flying, self-transcendence, flight simulation, gravity imagery, virtual reality, self-efficacy, bodily perception, sensorimotor illusion

Research Background and Issues

• Identified Problems or Challenges:

  • Dream flying is an important experience with self-transcendent characteristics, but it is difficult for people to actively induce such dream experiences through conventional means.
  • Virtual reality (VR) is considered effective in supporting profound emotional experiences, but how to design VR flying experiences to simulate the unique characteristics of dream flying remains unclear.
  • Existing flight interfaces lack bodily perception elements, which may fail to effectively promote self-transcendent emotions and self-efficacy.

• Significance:

  • Self-transcendent experiences can reduce ego salience, enhance overall mental health, and promote altruistic behavior and social harmony.
  • The empowerment in dream flying can enhance psychological resilience and confidence by increasing individuals' sense of success in tasks.

• Research Motivation:

  • To explore the design of VR flying experiences to simulate the emotional benefits of dream flying.
  • To compare different flight interfaces to evaluate whether bodily perception can enhance self-transcendence and self-efficacy.

Solution

• Methods or Solutions:

  • This study designed an innovative VR dream flying experience and compared two flight interfaces:
    • Handheld Controller: Representing a low-embodiment interface.
    • HeadJoystick: Representing a high-embodiment interface that provides motion perception cues.

• Innovations:

  • Combining self-transcendent emotions (e.g., awe, serenity, connectedness) with empowerment (a sense of control through bodily perception).
  • Creating a multisensory environment (e.g., lighting and sound) to simulate dream flying scenarios.

• Implementation Steps and Key Technologies:

  1. Flight Scene Design: Gradual transitions from a dark room to the sky, clouds, outer space, and a luminous forest.
  2. Multisensory Setup: Providing lighting and sound elements, with lighting indicating the next stage of the experience.
  3. User Interface Comparison: Completing flight tasks using the HeadJoystick and handheld controller.
  4. Experimentation and Data Collection:
     • Using questionnaires to quantify changes in users' self-transcendence and self-efficacy experiences.
     • Collecting subjective user feedback on the flight experience through interviews.

Research Findings

• Specific Findings:

  • Compared to the handheld controller, the HeadJoystick significantly enhanced users' sense of self-efficacy and self-transcendence (especially non-dual awareness and connectedness).
  • The HeadJoystick significantly increased users' bodily engagement and sensorimotor illusions.

• Advantages over Existing Solutions:

  • The HeadJoystick reduced cognitive load and enhanced a seamless flying experience.
  • It provided a more intuitive and embodied flight control method, resulting in a more authentic self-transcendent experience.

• Experimental or Evaluation Results:

  • Quantitative data indicated that the HeadJoystick better supported users' self-efficacy (with a significant increase in average efficacy scores).
  • Subjective interviews revealed that bodily perception enhanced immersion and emotional engagement with the virtual environment.
  • No fully significant differences in emotions like "awe" were observed, but users generally perceived the VR environment as transcendent.

• Limitations and Future Directions:

  • Some experimental data were affected by limitations due to COVID-19, and the sample size was relatively small.
  • The flight experience may require further testing in cross-cultural contexts to avoid the influence of a single cultural background.
  • Interface adjustments (e.g., reducing physical fatigue from the HeadJoystick) are a direction for future optimization.
  • Future research could explore integrating dream research techniques (e.g., targeted memory reactivation) into devices to enhance VR emotional experiences.

Systematic Design Recommendations

• Ambiguity: Design abstract and open virtual scenes that allow users to assign meaning based on their personal background.
• Lighting Element Design: Dynamic "non-natural lighting" can provide a sense of vitality and appeal, enhancing transcendent experiences.
• Environmental Setup and Transitional Rituals: Designing guided meditation and gradual transitional scenes before the experience can provide users with a more complete emotional connection.