Mind the Gap! Advancing Immersion in Virtual Reality—Factors, Measurement, and Research Opportunities

Abstract

This paper explores the concept of “immersion” in virtual reality (VR) systems, emphasizing the technological aspects that contribute to a comprehensive and multisensory user experience. Immersion refers to a system’s technological capabilities to provide extensive, multisensory displays surrounding the user. While factors like display resolution, spatial audio, and cross-modal consistency characterize immersion, no singular element independently achieves complete immersion, and, as such, systems require a combination of factors. However, quantifying immersion is challenging due to the lack of standardized and systematic measures of VR system’s technical capabilities. Opportunities exist to establish operational frameworks and standards that objectively quantify immersive contributions. This paper reviews immersion concepts, measures, and technological factors. From this, we outline a series of recommendations aimed at advancing the study of immersion in VR.