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Explicit memories, also known as declarative memories, are consciously remembered, recalled, and reported. Studying for a chemistry exam involves material that will become part of explicit memory. There are two types of explicit memory: episodic and semantic.
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Human Fear Conditioning Conducted in Full Immersion 3-Dimensional Virtual Reality
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Immersion, presence, and episodic memory in virtual reality environments.

S Adam Smith1, Neil W Mulligan1

  • 1Department of Psychology, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA.

Memory (Hove, England)
|July 23, 2021
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Summary

Virtual reality (VR) immersion properties impact episodic memory, but presence does not mediate this effect. Different immersion factors uniquely influence memory and presence, showing their independence in VR research.

Keywords:
Virtual realityepisodic memoryimmersionpresence

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Area of Science:

  • Cognitive Psychology
  • Virtual Reality Research
  • Human-Computer Interaction

Background:

  • Virtual reality (VR) is a tool for psychological research, but its impact on episodic memory is not fully understood.
  • Immersion (objective environmental realism) and presence (subjective sense of being there) are key VR characteristics.
  • Previous research suggests immersion benefits learning, but its consistent effect on memory components and the role of presence remain unclear.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate how specific virtual reality (VR) immersion properties influence episodic memory.
  • To examine whether the subjective sense of presence mediates the relationship between immersion and memory.
  • To assess the independent effects of field of view, sensory modalities, and lighting realism on memory and presence.

Main Methods:

  • Three experiments manipulated VR immersion using field of view, unimodal (visual) vs. bimodal (audiovisual) environments, and lighting realism.
  • Participants' episodic memory performance and subjective sense of presence were assessed.
  • Cross-experimental analyses were conducted to evaluate the mediating role of presence.

Main Results:

  • Manipulations of VR immersion had heterogeneous effects, influencing memory or presence, but not always both.
  • No evidence was found for presence mediating the effect of immersion on episodic memory across experiments.
  • The findings suggest a degree of independence between immersion and presence concerning their impact on memory.

Conclusions:

  • Specific properties of virtual reality (VR) immersion have distinct and sometimes independent effects on episodic memory.
  • The subjective experience of presence does not appear to mediate how VR immersion influences memory recall.
  • This research clarifies the complex relationship between VR design elements, user experience, and cognitive performance.