Seeing Avatars During Social Interaction in VR May Enhance Inter-Brain Synchronization

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Virtual Reality Studies
• Social Interaction Research

Background:

• Inter-brain synchronization (IBS) is crucial for successful social interactions.
• Virtual reality (VR) offers novel platforms for social interaction research.
• The impact of avatars on neural synchrony in VR is not well understood.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate whether seeing avatars during VR social interaction affects neural synchrony.
• To compare inter-brain synchronization (IBS) with and without avatars during a collaborative task.

Main Methods:

• Participants (30 individuals in 15 pairs) engaged in a finger position tracking task in VR.
• Experimental conditions included virtual cursors only versus cursors with avatars.
• Data collected included electroencephalography (EEG), positional tracking, and embodiment questionnaires.

Main Results:

• Avatar use significantly increased virtual body ownership but not agency or positional synchronization.
• Inter-brain synchronization (IBS) strength significantly increased in the alpha band with avatars.
• Alpha-band IBS correlated with subjective body ownership and showed a trend with social inclusion.

Conclusions:

• Avatar-induced embodiment may enhance inter-brain synchrony during VR social interactions.
• Increased neural synchrony suggests deeper connection and potentially more successful collaboration in avatar-mediated VR.
• Future research should consider visual complexity's role in avatar-mediated interactions.