Allocating less attention to central vision during vection is correlated with less motion sickness

Abstract

Visually induced motion sickness (VIMS) is a common discomfort response associated with vection-provoking stimuli. It has been suggested that susceptibility to VIMS depends on the ability to regulate visual performance during vection. To test this, 29 participants, with VIMS susceptibility assessed by Motion Sickness Susceptibility Questionnaire, were recruited to undergo three series of sustained attention to response tests (SARTs) while watching dot pattern stimuli known to provoke roll-vection. In general, SARTs performance was impaired in the central visual field (CVF), but improved in peripheral visual field (PVF), suggesting the reallocation of attention during vection. Moreover, VIMS susceptibility was negatively correlated with the effect sizes, suggesting that participants who were less susceptible to VIMS showed better performance in attention re-allocation. Finally, when trained to re-allocation attention from the CVF to the PVF, participants experienced more stable vection. Findings provide a better understanding of VIMS and shed light on possible preventive measures. Practitioner Summary: Allocating less visual attention to central visual field during visual motion stimulation is associated with stronger vection and higher resistance to motion sickness. Virtual reality application designers may utilise the location of visual tasks to strengthen and stabilise vection, while reducing the potential of visually induced motion sickness.

Prior Exposure to Dynamic Visual Displays Reduces Vection Onset Latency

“…Conceivably, such changes might attract more of the observer's attention to their visual field, and result in greater weightings being assigned to visual (relative to nonvisual) inputs/stimulation. Consistent with this notion, several attentional effects have previously been reported for vection (e.g., Kitazaki and Sato, 2003;Seno et al, 2011b;Wei et al, 2018). The importance of wide-field visual stimulation could be tested if an observer performed a rapid-serial-visual-presentation (RSVP) task in central vision (which would concentrate their attention in central vision) before inducing vection (i.e., instead of presenting wide-field visual changes as in the present experiments).…”

The impact of task workload on cybersickness

“…Souchet et al (2021) conducted a literature review of papers related to VR and cognitive load and suggest that cognitive load can be affected by cybersickness, but they do not suggest a specific relationship. Wei et al, 2018 showed that participants who were less susceptible to visually-induced motion sickness (VIMS, which includes cybersickness and simulator sickness) performed better at a task and posited the reallocation of attention during vection (i.e., perceived illusory self-motion) as a possible explanation. Varmaghani et al (2021) speculated about the reduction of spatial ability and attention and those factors' impact on cybersickness, but found no significant correlations between cognitive performance and cybersickness.…”

Recent Progress in Space Physiology and Aging

“…Selection of candidates to minimize the risk has always been the preferred solution, nevertheless training procedures have also been investigated throughout the space program. Allocating less attention to the central field during visual motion stimulation has been recently found to be associated with more stable vection and higher resistance to motion sickness ( Wei et al, 2018 ). Virtual reality application designers may use this finding to strengthen and stabilize vection, while reducing the risk of visually induced motion sickness.…”