Ahn, J. S. & Noh, G. Y. (2024). Optimizing the Educational Potential of Virtual Reality: The Effects of Virtual Reality and Pop Quizzes on Spatial Presence and Efficacy Perceptions, Published Online.

ABSTRACT

Reflecting the trend of virtual reality (VR) studies in crisis and disaster communication, this study designed VR content on fire evacuation and aimed to investigate the effects of VR for educational purposes on perceptual and cognitive factors. Using a 2 (viewing condition: video vs. VR) X 2 (quiz: presence vs. absence) between-subjects design, an experiment was conducted with 176 university students in South Korea. Findings revealed that participants who were exposed to VR (compared with video) experienced greater spatial presence and, in turn, had higher response efficacy and self-efficacy. The inclusion of pop quizzes in the material hindered the evaluation of the direct and indirect effects of VR. The findings of this study can contribute to expanding the theoretical framework of VR research and identifying learning-related factors to develop more effective educational materials related to fire evacuation.