A Study Of The Impact Of Interaction Methods On The Learning Experience In An Immersive Virtual Experiment Environment

The rapid development of virtual reality technology provides a broader space for human-computer interaction in immersive virtual experiment environments.In addition to mouse and keyboard interaction,various other interaction methods have emerged,such as eye tracking,timed targeting,haptic feedback,gesture interaction,motion capture,and voice interaction.The diversity of interaction methods in immersive virtual experiment environments offers rich operational experiences to learners,however,when researchers design and develop immersive virtual experiments,it remains to be further investigated what interaction methods can be chosen to make learners’experimental efficiency and learning experience better.In view of this,this study investigates the effects of two interaction modes,namely,handle interaction and gesture interaction,on learners’ virtual experiment efficiency and learning experience,in order to provide suggestions and recommendations for selecting and improving the interaction modes of immersive virtual experiment environments.Firstly,this study conducted a literature review on virtual reality,immersive virtual experiment environments,interaction methods,and learning experience,focusing on the impact of different interaction methods on learners’ learning experience in immersive virtual experiment environments,and summarizing the existing problems in current researches.Then,combined with the inspiration from different theories on the design of immersive virtual experiments,an immersive chemistry virtual experiment system was designed and developed in this study,with adaptations for handle interaction and gesture interaction.Next,using the method of intergroup design.learners were randomly assigned to two groups to complete virtual experiment tasks which use handle interaction and gesture interactions respectively.The timing function of the virtual experiment system was able to record the time for learners to complete each sub-task during the process of experiment operation.Once the experimental tasks were completed,learners filled out subjective questionnaires and were invited to conduct interviews.Finally,the time spent by learners completing the virtual experiment tasks was analyzed to objectively compare whether there are differences in experimental efficiency between different interaction methods.The subjective questionnaires and interview data from learners were also analyzed to subjectively compare whether there are differences in learning experience between different interaction methods.It was found that handle interaction and gesture interaction,as two different human-computer interaction methods,have different experimental efficiency in different task types and bring different learning experiences to learners.The major findings reached are the following:(1)In the immersive virtual experiment environment,the appropriate virtual reality interaction method should be chosen based on task characteristics.(2)Compared with gesture interaction,handle interaction has higher perceived usefulness and can improve the efficiency of learners’ experimental operations.Learners focus more on the practicality and experimental efficiency of the interaction method in the virtual experimental environment,thus affecting their willingness to continue using it.Compared with handle interaction,gesture interaction has higher perceived ease of use.Gesture interaction is more convenient to use,the operation method conforms to the behavior habits in reality,which can increase the directness of learners’ interaction and augment the sense of interactive experience,and is able to alleviate physiological discomfort and dizziness symptoms to a certain extent.Learner’s confidence in completing virtual experimental tasks is also stronger.(3)The perceived usefulness of handle interaction virtual experiments is significantly positively correlated with the willingness of continuous use and the degree of satisfaction.The perceived ease of use of gesture interaction virtual experiments is significantly positively correlated with the willingness of continuous use and the degree of satisfaction.