Reduced field of view alters scanning behaviour

Virtual reality environments presented through head mounted displays (HMDs) hold promise for training or studying mobility activities, such as cycling, walking, and street crossing. Yet, the limited field of view (FoV) of HMDs may influence scanning behaviour, reducing the translatability of findings to real-life situations. This study aims to (i) investigate how a reduced FoV influences scanning behaviour during mobility activities, and (ii) whether these alterations in scanning vary across these activities.

Sixteen participants performed a real-life walking, cycling and street crossing activity twice; once with and once without a reduced FoV. A mobile eye-tracker with a built in gyroscope recorded scanning behaviour. Scanning behaviour was evaluated in terms of saccadic frequency and amplitude, horizontal head movement frequency and amplitude, and the horizontal and vertical eye position.

The participants performed more horizontal head movements with larger amplitudes during the reduced FoV compared to the normal FoV. Additionally, they distributed their horizontal eye position more towards the central regions and less towards their peripheral regions. Overall, the range of both horizontal and vertical eye position decreased. The impact of the reduced FoV on horizontal head movement amplitude, horizontal eye position, and vertical eye position varied across activities.

Generally, individuals seem to compensate for a reduced FoV by making more horizontal head movements with large amplitudes, while reducing the eye position distribution. Consequently, caution is advised when translating outcomes on scanning behaviour observed in HMDs to those expected in real-life situations.

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10055-025-01125-0.