Towards Design Principles for Experimental Simulations in Virtual Reality – Learning from Driving Simulators

Abstract

Experiments play an important role in Information Systems research. In this area, Virtual Reality (VR) technologies can serve as a tool for enabling and conducting research. e.g., to investigate human behavior in specific situations. A prime example is VR-supported driving simulators that allow researchers in the automotive domain to gather knowledge while reducing cost and complexity compared to field studies with real cars. We argue that the use of carefully designed VR-supported experiments might allow researchers to get deeper insights into human behavior. Thus, we derive design principles for VR Experiments as an artifact from the literature about VR-supported driving simulations that have been accepted as a useful tool for research in their domain.