Virtual Reality Exercise with Autonomy Support Increases Positive Affect During Time Trial Exercise

Area of Science:

• Exercise Physiology
• Virtual Reality Technology
• Psychology of Exercise

Background:

• Autonomy support, or the ability to make choices during exercise, is linked to improved performance and psychological well-being.
• Virtual reality (VR) offers a promising platform for integrating autonomy support into exercise regimens.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine the impact of autonomy support within a VR rowing exercise setting on physiological and psychological outcomes.
• To compare participant responses between a condition where they choose their VR environment and a control condition where it is assigned.

Main Methods:

• A repeated-measures crossover design was employed with 20 healthy participants.
• Participants completed a 1500m rowing task in an immersive VR environment under both a Choice and a Control condition.
• Physiological (heart rate, perceived exertion) and psychological (affective valence, remembered pleasure) data were collected.

Main Results:

• A statistically significant increase in affective valence was observed in the Choice condition compared to the Control condition (P = 0.03).
• No significant differences were found between conditions for rowing completion time, perceived exertion, or heart rate.
• Remembered pleasure did not differ significantly between the two conditions.

Conclusions:

• Providing choice in VR exercise environments enhances the affective experience of self-regulated exercise.
• Autonomy support in VR exercise can improve psychological responses without negatively impacting physiological strain or exercise performance.
• Immersive VR with autonomy support presents a viable method for increasing engagement in exercise.