The effect of spatial boundaries on memory in a virtual environment.

Area of Science:

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

Background:

• The 'doorway effect' describes how spatial boundaries, like doorways, segment experiences, impacting memory.
• Evidence for the doorway effect in immersive virtual reality (VR) is inconsistent.
• Understanding event segmentation in VR is crucial for designing realistic and memorable virtual experiences.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the 'doorway effect' in an immersive VR environment.
• To examine how interference tasks affect event memory segmentation in VR.
• To determine if distractor tasks interact with or add to the doorway effect.

Main Methods:

• Ninety participants explored a five-room VR building with interactable objects.
• Interference tasks (visuospatial or reaction-based) were administered at doorways or in rooms.
• Memory recall for object order and location was compared across conditions (distractor vs. control).

Main Results:

• A significant doorway effect was observed in the control group without distractions.
• Visuospatial distractor tasks impaired object memory when performed mid-room, suggesting room re-segmentation.
• Distractor tasks at doorways did not worsen memory recall beyond the inherent doorway effect.

Conclusions:

• Both spatial boundaries (doorways) and interference tasks can segment memory in VR.
• The impact of distractor tasks on event segmentation depends on their location relative to spatial boundaries.
• These findings contribute to understanding memory processes within immersive virtual environments.