Effects of Virtual Reality characteristics on collaboration between learners

Do visualizations of activities have an effect on an individual’s situational awareness when collaborating with others inside Virtual Reality?

Bachelor thesis (2023)

Authors

A.H. Dönmez Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science

Contributors

M.M. Specht Web Information Systems - EEMCS (supervisor 1)
N. van der Meer Web Information Systems - EEMCS (supervisor 1)
Faculty
Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science
Copyright: © 2023 Ahmet Dönmez
Virtual Reality Experiment Collaborative Learning Situational Awareness Virtual reality
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Published Date

2023-7

Language

English

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Faculty

Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science

Abstract

Background
This research explores the role of visualization tools in enhancing collaborative learning in virtual reality environments.
Methodology
An experiment was conducted, involving two groups of participants, each tasked with collaboratively solving a complex maze in a virtual reality environment. Both groups experienced two conditions: the experimental condition, where participants had access to visualization tools such as visual cones and highlighting capabilities, and the
controlled condition, where these tools were not available. The participants’ situational awareness were assessed using both the Situation Awareness Rating Technique questionnaire and the Situational Awareness Linked Indicators Adapted to Novel Tasks framework.Results
The Situational Awareness Linked Indicators Adapted to Novel Tasks scores were higher for the experimental session for Group 2, while being lower for Group 1. However, the Situation Awareness Rating Technique scores were generally lowerin the experimental condition for both groups.
Conclusion
These results demonstrate the potential virtual reality has as a platform for collaborative learning and highlight the need for further research into the design of effective visualization tools and the measurement of situational awareness in virtual reality. Furthermore, this research opens up new possibilities into the design of virtual reality environments for collaborative learning and the potential of virtual reality as a tool for enhancing collaborative learning.