ORIGINAL ARTICLE
Vi ual Reali y (2025) 29:128
h ps://doi.o g/10.1007/s10055-025-01205-1
labo a o y, VR en i onmen s a e highly imme si e and
ealis ic, hence elici ing mo e li elike mnemonic p ocess-
ing (Kiske e al. 2021b; Schöne e al. 2019). In e es ingly,
se e al s udies p o ide e idence o a memo y supe io i y
e ec in VR, i.e., enhanced memo y pe o mance o VR
expe iences as opposed o wo-dimensional p esen a ions
commonly used in con en ional labo a o y se ups. This
e ec has been ound o wo king memo y pe o mance
(Gabana e al. 2017), memo y ecall pe o mance (K okos
e al. 2019), and ecogni ion memo y pe o mance (Schöne
e al. 2019). P e ious esea ch a ibu ed he enhanced
memo y pe o mance o he in ol emen o he au obio-
g aphical memo y sys em (Schöne e al. 2019) cha ac e -
ized by pe sonal ele ance and he in eg a ion o newly
made expe iences in o he na a i e o an indi idual’s li e
expe ience (Conway 2005; Schöne e al. 2018). The i id
1 In oduc ion
The applica ion o Vi ual Reali y (VR) as a psychological
esea ch me hod o in es iga e eal-li e cogni i e p ocessing
has led o a e-e alua ion o mnemonic p ocesses p e iously
in es iga ed in he con en ional labo a o y (e.g., Co i eau
Leca alie e al. 2020; Kiske e al. 2021c; Rod íguez e
al. 2022). In con as o expe iences in he con en ional
Ma ike Johnsdo
[email p o ec ed]
1 Expe imen al Psychology I, Ins i u e o Psychology,
Osnab ück Uni e si y, Osnab ück, Ge many
2 Depa men o Psychology, No wegian Uni e si y o Science
and Technology, T ondheim, No way
Abs ac
Al hough ecen psychological esea ch p o ides e idence o enhanced memo y e ie al o Vi ual Reali y (VR) expe i-
ences compa ed o con en ional labo a o y expe iences, he unc ional cha ac e is ics o he unde lying mnemonic p o-
cesses emain unclea . Ini ial s udies sugges ha encoding and e ie al in ol e dis inc cogni i e p ocesses, ye he
possible echnological a i ac s induced by VR head-moun ed displays (VR-HMDs) ha e no been accoun ed o . To
de e mine he ac o s in luencing modali y-speci ic memo y p ocessing, 122 pa icipan s pe o med an old/new ecogni ion
memo y ask wea ing a VR-HMD. S imuli we e i s ei he p esen ed wo-dimensionally on a sc een wi hin a VR en i on-
men (media ed VR; mVR) o expe ienced immedia ely in a h ee-dimensional imme si e VR en i onmen (iVR). In he
subsequen old/new ecogni ion memo y ask, pa icipan s had o ecall he s imuli ei he in he same o he o he modali y,
p o iding a c oss-modali y compa ison. As a esul , he canonical con ex e ec , i.e., an ad an age o memo y pe o -
mance in cong uen con ex s, was ound o bo h mVR and iVR modali ies. Mos impo an ly, he s udy u he p o ides
e idence o a memo y supe io i y e ec ollowing iVR expe iences, as an equally high e ie al success was obse ed
e en when he subsequen ecall was es ed in mVR. In conclusion, he imp o ed ecall obse ed sugges s ha imme si e
en i onmen s play a c ucial ole in enhancing he encoding p ocess, whe eas echnological a i ac s, pa icula ly con ex ual
ac o s o he VR-HMD, can be uled ou . Fu he mo e, he ans e abili y o in o ma ion om wo-dimensional o h ee-
dimensional en i onmen s seems limi ed. Ou s udy hus ad oca es o in eg a ing imme si e VR in o lea ning con ex s
o ex end he applicabili y o lea ned con en o a ious se ings.
Keywo ds Vi ual eali y · Implici lea ning · Memo y · Encoding · Lea ning con ex
Recei ed: 27 June 2024 / Accep ed: 15 July 2025 / Published online: 7 Augus 2025
© The Au ho (s) 2025
Memo y pe o mance as a unc ion o modali y and con ex : e ealing
he cogni i e mechanisms unde lying enhanced memo y in i ual
eali y
Ma ikeJohnsdo 1· JoannaKiske 1· Me leSageho n1· ThomasG ube 1· BenjaminSchöne1,2
1 3
Vi ual Reali y (2025) 29:128
and expe ien ial na u e o VR closely mi o s eal-li e in e -
ac ions, he eby embedding memo ies mo e deeply wi hin
he au obiog aphical memo y amewo k (see Schöne e
al. 2019). Addi ionally, in o ma ion which is encoded in
a VR en i onmen and acco dingly s o ed wi hin au obio-
g aphical memo y aces, is mo e e o lessly e ie able
han memo ies o med unde con en ional labo a o y con-
di ions, ega dless o memo y pe o mance (Kiske e al.
2021c). Recen elec ophysiological indings sugges ha
hese quali a i ely dis inc mnemonic p ocesses in VR en i-
onmen s (Kiske e al. 2021c) al eady occu du ing ea ly
p ocessing s ages as e idenced by ex ensi e encoding p o-
cesses in ol ing mul imodal neu al in eg a ion (Johnsdo
e al. 2023a, b). The e o e, VR p o ides a unique app oach
o in es iga e mnemonic p ocesses in ol ing au obiog aph-
ical memo y unde mo e ealis ic condi ions.
Howe e , se e al ac o s po en ially con ibu ing o he
memo y supe io i y e ec in VR emain o be e alua ed.
In addi ion o he a o emen ioned di e ences obse ed
be ween con en ional labo a o y and i ual condi ions,
and con adic o y o he memo y supe io i y e ec in VR,
se e al s udies ac ually indica e equal, o poo e memo y
pe o mance in VR in compa ison o con en ional 2D expe-
iences depending on he e ie al ask (e.g., Cade and
Chainay 2020; Johnsdo e al. 2023a, b; Kiske e al. 2021c;
Mona o e al. 2024; Schöne e al. 2023). In pa icula , he
ee ecall o s imuli encoded in a i ual en i onmen ei he
p esen ed in VR o on a con en ional 2D sc een did no
esul in di e ences in memo y pe o mance (Cade and
Chainay 2020). In a u he s udy, pa icipan s pe o med
poo e in an applica ion ask o p e iously lea ned ules
a e lea ning ia a 3D/360° ideo compa ed o a 2D ideo.
Mo eo e , no di e ences in memo y pe o mance we e
ob ained be ween bo h g oups in ei he a mul iple-choice
es o in a ee ecall es in he same s udy (Johnsdo e
al. 2023a, b). Ano he s udy ha used a ecogni ion memo y
ask in ol ing a emembe /know pa adigm (Tul ing 1985;
Ga dine and Ja a 1990; Raja am 1993; see Kiske e al.
2021b) ound ha explo ing a i ual illage ei he in VR
o ia a 2D sc een did no esul in di e en memo y pe -
o mance (Kiske e al. 2021b). Compa ing memo y pe -
o mance o objec s encoded in a i ual oom o ia 2D
pic u es o he oom e ealed no di e ences be ween he
wo condi ions in a ee ecall ask, a isual ecogni ion
ask, and a sugges ibili y ask wi h he excep ion o a non-
sugges i e e bal ask in which memo y pe o mance was
be e in VR (Mona o e al. 2024). A i h s udy compa ed
memo y pe o mance o ideos o di e en scenes wa ched
ei he in VR o in 2D on a moni o . Al hough he VR g oup
pe o med be e in a ee ecall ask, he wo g oups did no
show di e ences in memo y pe o mance in a cued ecall
ask (Schöne e al. 2023). O e all, he a ying memo y asks
do no necessa ily p o ide he same conclusions abou he
di e ences in memo y pe o mance be ween VR and 2D,
al hough no s ingen pa e n eme ges ega ding memo y
pe o mance as a unc ion o he e ie al ask.
Impo an ly, i emains unclea whe he he a ying
modali y-speci ic mnemonic p ocessing cha ac e is ics a e
a ibu able o he ac ual exposu e o h ee-dimensional
imme si e expe iences in VR, o whe he hey a e only
in luenced by possible a i ac s induced by wea ing a VR
head-moun ed display (VR-HMD). Since mos s udies
assessed memo y pe o mance a e conduc ing he encod-
ing phase in VR ia an HMD and in 2D ia a con en ional
moni o (Johnsdo e al. 2023a, b; Kiske e al. 2021b,
2021c; Schöne e al. 2019), he di e ing ou comes in mne-
monic p ocessing migh a ise om he use o he VR-HMD
in only one o he compa ed condi ions, c ea ing he alse
imp ession ha memo y p ocesses in VR di e ma kedly
om hose unde 2D condi ions. On he one hand, he no -
el y o he echnology and he associa ed high cogni i e load
can ha e a nega i e impac on lea ning (Miguel-Alonso e
al. 2023; Wu e al. 2013). On he o he hand, he h ill o
echnological awe o wea ing a VR-HMD can also imp o e
mo i a ion and subjec i e usabili y (Koch e al. 2018) as
well as memo y pe o mance by inc easing a en ion and
e o (Huang e al. 2021). The e o e, he no el y o wea ing
a VR-HMD migh be a con ibu ing ac o o he memo y
supe io i y e ec in VR, and pa icula ly o he di e ging
esul s in mnemonic esea ch compa ing imme si e o con-
en ional condi ions. In e es ingly, apa om mnemonic
p ocessing, mo i a ional and emo ional eac ions s ill
exhibi di e en unc ional cha ac e is ics on a neu al le el
when con olling o a po en ial in luence o he VR-HMD
by p esen ing bo h 3D/360° s imuli and 2D s imuli ia an
HMD (Schöne e al. 2023). These indings indica e ha he
h ee-dimensionali y o s imuli is a ele an ac o in luenc-
ing a ec i e eac ions in VR.
Fu he p ope ies in insic o VR migh accoun o
he he e ogenei y in memo y pe o mance ou comes. The
disc epancies migh be a ibu able o me hodological di -
e ences ac oss s udies, and hus esul om me e ech-
nological a i ac s like he echnical ea u es o he VR
sys ems a hand along wi h a ying deg ees o in e ac i -
i y and p esence a o ded by he VR en i onmen s ( o
e iew see Smi h 2019). These speci ic echnological p op-
e ies o a VR sys em gene a e di e en le els o imme -
sion, i.e., he capabili y o a VR echnology o ep esen a
ealis ic en i onmen (Sla e and Wilbu 1997). Gene ally,
a highe deg ee o imme sion inc eases he sense o p es-
ence (Dieme e al. 2015), i.e., he sense o ac ually being in
an in e ac i e and esponsi e en i onmen (Sanchez-Vi es
and Sla e 2005). Al hough a di ec in luence o p esence on
memo y pe o mance could no always be obse ed (e.g.,
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Vi ual Reali y (2025) 29:128
Smi h and Mulligan 2021), o he s udies ha e sugges ed
p esence o be one o he mos p o ound ea u es o VR ha
has been shown o be posi i ely ela ed o memo y pe o -
mance (Cade e al. 2022; Makowski e al. 2017).
Taking in o accoun he po en ial echnological a i ac s
esul ing om he use o he VR-HMD, his s udy aimed
o un a el modali y-speci ic cogni i e mechanisms in bo h
imme si e VR and con en ional 2D se ings e lec ed in
enhanced e ie al success. The use o a VR-HMD in all
condi ions ensu es ha di e ences in memo y pe o mance
can be a ibu ed o speci ic unc ional cha ac e is ics o
mnemonic p ocessing a he han me e echnological ea-
u es. Memo y pe o mance was assessed by ansla ing a
con en ional old/new ecogni ion pa adigm o bo h a medi-
a ed VR en i onmen (mVR), p esen ing 2D s imuli on i -
ual moni o wi hin VR, and an imme si e VR en i onmen
(iVR), p esen ing 3D/360° s imuli in VR. The subsequen
old/new ecogni ion memo y ask was ei he pe o med in
he same o he o he modali y, p o iding a c oss-modali y
compa ison.
Classical indings om p e ious memo y esea ch
showed ha memo y pe o mance bene i s om con ex
e ec s, i.e., om a cong uen en i onmen du ing encod-
ing and e ie al (Godden and Baddeley 1975). Since he
s imuli in he mVR en i onmen we e p esen ed wo-
dimensionally, i.e., as in he con en ional labo a o y, we
expec ed o obse e high memo y pe o mance sco es when
pa icipan s encoded and ecalled he s imuli in he same
mVR en i onmen . The classical con ex e ec could be
eplica ed wi hin di e en VR en i onmen s (Shin e al.
2021), hence we expec ed simila ly high memo y pe o -
mance sco es o cong uen iVR con ex s du ing encod-
ing and e ie al. Assuming ha he memo y supe io i y
e ec in VR obse ed in p e ious esea ch was only caused
by echnological a i ac s o he VR-HMD, only con ex
e ec s should in luence memo y pe o mance in he p es-
en s udy, and high memo y pe o mance sco es should
only occu when modali ies a e cong uen du ing encoding
and e ie al. Howe e , gi en he e idence o a memo y
supe io i y e ec in VR when expe iences become pa o
an au obiog aphical memo y ne wo k (Schöne e al. 2019),
we also expec ed high memo y pe o mance sco es o pa -
icipan s encoding in iVR and ecalling in mVR. This esul
would indica e ha imme si e VR does no only se e as a
me e con ex ual ac o bu ha i enhances encoding p o-
cesses beyond wea ing a VR-HMD. Las ly, his e ec was
no expec ed o pa icipan s encoding in mVR and ecall-
ing in iVR as memo y pe o mance should be educed by
he change in con ex , wi hou he bene icial e ec s o he
h ee-dimensional p esen a ion o he s imulus ma e ial du -
ing encoding.
Addi ionally, due o he inconsis en indings ega d-
ing he impac o p esence on memo y pe o mance (see
Cade e al. 2022; Makowski e al. 2017; Smi h and Mul-
ligan 2021), we assessed p esence bo h a e encoding and
e ie al o u he in es iga e i s ela ion o memo y pe o -
mance when con olling o he in luence o he VR-HMD.
Since a high le el o imme sion inc eases he sense o p es-
ence ( o e iew see Dieme e al. 2015), we expec ed o
obse e a highe sense o p esence in he iVR modali y
compa ed o he mVR modali y bo h du ing encoding and
e ie al.
2 Me hods
2.1 Pa icipan s
139 pa icipan s we e ec ui ed ia he Uni e si y’s s u-
den s e-mail lis , he Uni e si y’s online bulle in boa d
and by s uden s o he bachelo ’s deg ee p og am in psy-
chology. Pa icipan s we e sc eened o psychological and
neu ological diso de s, subs ance abuse and symp oms o
a SARS-CoV-2 in ec ion. All had no mal o co ec ed o
no mal ision. Eigh pa icipan s had o be excluded due
o un ul illed inclusion c i e ia, h ee da a acquisi ions had
o be e mina ed because o echnical issues, wo pa ici-
pan s p ema u ely e mina ed he expe imen and ou pa -
icipan s did no show up o he appoin men . The e o e,
da a o 122 pa icipan s we e included in he analyses (29
male, 93 emale, MAge = 22.32, SDAge = 3.610; nmedia ed = 30,
nc oss−up = 32, nc oss−down = 29, nimme si e = 31). Pa icipan s
ecei ed pa ial cou se c edi s o 15€ o hei pa icipa ion.
The s udy was conduc ed in acco dance wi h he hygiene
guidelines o he Uni e si y o minimizing he sp ead o
SARS-CoV-2 du ing he COVID pandemic. The s udy was
app o ed by he local e hics commi ee and all pa icipan s
ga e in o med w i en consen .
2.2 S imuli & expe imen al condi ions
120 3D/360° ideos ilmed wi h a esolu ion o 4 K a s an-
da d eye le el we e selec ed om he lib a y o uni e sal
Vi ual Reali y expe imen s (luVRe; Schöne e al. 2023).
The ideos showed a a ie y o scenes, including o exam-
ple di e en loca ions, animals o human in e ac ions ( o a
comp ehensi e lis o he used scenes om he da abase see
Supplemen a y Ma e ial S1). All scenes we e eco ded wi h
sound. Each ideo was cu o en seconds and was ecoded
o 2D o he p esen a ion on he i ual moni o wi hin a
h ee-dimensional VR en i onmen in he mVR modali y.
Du ing he encoding session, he ideos we e ei he p e-
sen ed in mVR on in iVR, and he modali y in he e ie al
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Vi ual Reali y (2025) 29:128
2.3 P ocedu e
The s udy had o be pa ly adap ed o he es ic ions due
o he COVID pandemic. The e o e, he anamneses we e
ini ially conduc ed online p io o he expe imen o mini-
mize physical con ac , whe eas hey we e scheduled di ec ly
be o e he expe imen a a la e s age o he da a acquisi ion.
The expe imen was conduc ed on wo consecu i e days.
On he i s day, pa icipan s we e andomly assigned o one
o he ou condi ions and we e ins uc ed o pu on and
adjus he VR-HMD co ec ly. They we e equipped wi h
wo con olle s and headphones ha we e used o p o ide
he p e iously eco ded ins uc ion. The encoding session
was conduc ed ei he in mVR o in iVR (see Fig. 1a). Pa -
icipan s in he mVR modali y we e loca ed in on o a 2D
moni o on a able in a i ual h ee-dimensional labo a o y,
while pa icipan s in he iVR condi ion we e loca ed in a
neu al g ey oom. All pa icipan s we e ins uc ed ha hey
would be p esen ed wi h ideos o a ious scenes, which
hey we e asked o wa ch ca e ully. A e wa ds, hey could
session was ei he consis en wi h he encoding session
(cong uen con ex ) o was ca ied ou in he al e na i e
modali y (incong uen con ex ). In he mVR modali y, he
ideos we e p esen ed in 2D on he i ual moni o , while
hey we e p esen ed in 3D/360° in he iVR modali y, i.e.,
he pa icipan s we e su ounded by he ideos and wa ched
hem om a i s -pe son pe spec i e (see Fig. 1). This design
esul ed in ou condi ions p o iding a c oss-modali y com-
pa ison: Encoding in mVR and e ie al in mVR (media ed),
encoding in mVR and e ie al in iVR (c oss-up), encoding
in iVR and e ie al in mVR (c oss-down), and encoding in
iVR and e ie al in iVR (imme si e).
Bo h he mVR and iVR en i onmen s we e buil using
Uni y ( e sion 2020, Uni y Technologies, San F ancisco,
Uni ed S a es). They we e p esen ed using a s andalone HTC
Vi e Focus Plus HMD (wi h a esolu ion o 1440 × 1600
pixels pe eye). Addi ionally, pa icipan s we e equipped
wi h wo Vi e Focus Plus con olle s and Sony o e -ea
headphones p o iding s e eoscopic audio.
Fig.1 Se up o he encoding phase (a) and he e ie al phase (b) in
media ed VR (mVR) and imme si e VR (iVR). The c oss-modali y
compa ison esul ed in ou condi ions: Encoding in mVR and e ie al
in mVR (media ed), encoding in mVR and e ie al in iVR (c oss-up),
encoding in iVR and e ie al in mVR (c oss-down), and encoding in
iVR and e ie al in iVR (imme si e)
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Vi ual Reali y (2025) 29:128
sepa a ely o each symp om (headache, nausea, and diz-
ziness) and each expe imen al phase (encoding, e ie al).
2.4.2 Memo y pe o mance
The sensi i i y index d-P ime (d’) was used o in es iga e
memo y pe o mance in each condi ion du ing he e ie al
phase. I is calcula ed by ela ing he hi s, i.e., he co ec ly
ecognized old s imuli o he alse posi i es, i.e., he new
s imuli inco ec ly a ed as old (d’ = zHi –zFalsePosi i e; Haa -
ei e al. 2010; Swe s e al. 1961). To compa e memo y
pe o mance be ween condi ions du ing he e ie al session
on he second day o he expe imen , a 2 × 2 ANOVA wi h
he ac o Encoding Modali y (mVR, iVR) and Re ie al
Modali y (mVR, iVR) esul ing in he condi ion combi-
na ions (mVR + mVR = media ed, mVR + iVR = c oss-up,
iVR + mVR = c oss-down, iVR + iVR = imme si e) was pe -
o med ollowed by pos -hoc - es s o independen sam-
ples wi h a Bon e oni-co ec ed signi icance le el. SPSS
(Ve sion 28) was used o s a is ical analyses.
To u he cla i y whe he non-signi ican g oup di e -
ences ega ding memo y pe o mance (d’) would indica e
he absence o a meaning ul e ec , he wo one-sided - es s
p ocedu e (TOST) was pe o med using he TOSTER pack-
age (Caldwell 2022; Lakens 2017) in RS udio (Ve sion
2023.3.1.446). In compa ison o non-signi ican esul s o
con en ional - es s, his equi alence es allows o s a is i-
cally ejec ing he exis ence o e ec s ha a e la ge enough
o be conside ed meaning ul, and he e o e o assume he
absence o an e ec . Two s a is ically signi ican esul s in
he TOST p ocedu e sugges s a is ical equi alence be ween
he compa ed g oups. In his case, he es wi h he smalle
es s a is ic is epo ed. The uppe and lowe equi alence
bounds ha need o be speci ied o he TOST a e based on
he smalles e ec size o in e es (SESOI). The SESOI used
in ou analyses was de e mined based on p e ious esea ch
ega ding memo y p ocessing in VR. Se e al VR s udies
ha e epo ed d’ as an indica o o memo y pe o mance
in di e en pa adigms (Kiske e al. 2021b, c; Schöne e al.
2019, 2023). The smalles e ec size o a signi ican e ec
ega ding memo y pe o mance documen ed in hese s ud-
ies was Cohen’s d = 0.5 (Schöne e al. 2023) which co e-
sponds o a medium e ec (Cohen 1988). The e o e, based
on he smalles e ec size obse ed o da e in simila s ud-
ies, he uppe and lowe bounds we e se o Cohen’s d = 0.5
and Cohen’s d = − 0.5.
2.4.3 P esence
All p esence da a we e analyzed using SPSS (Ve sion 28). To
analyze p esence, mean alues o all IPQ subscales on bo h
s a he expe imen by p essing a bu on in he i ual en i-
onmen . Du ing he encoding phase, a o al o 60 ideos
we e andomly selec ed om all 120 ideos and p esen ed
in andom o de . The e o e, each o he 120 ideos could
be andomly p esen ed in all ou condi ions, wi h no ideo
being p esen ed epea edly.
A e he encoding phase, pa icipan s illed in he Ge -
man e sion o he iG oup P esence Ques ionnai e (IPQ;
Schube e al. 2001). The IPQ assesses he sense o p es-
ence and consis s o he subscales Gene al P esence (one
i em), Spa ial P esence ( i e i ems), In ol emen ( ou
i ems) and Realness ( ou i ems). A Like -Scale om one
o se en was used o he IPQ a ings. Addi ionally, pa -
icipan s we e asked o symp oms o mo ion sickness, i.e.,
headache, nausea, and dizziness.
Du ing he e ie al phase, pa icipan s had o pe o m
an unannounced old/new ecogni ion ask exac ly 24 h
a e he encoding phase. Again, hey we e ins uc ed o pu
on and adjus he VR-HMD co ec ly. Depending on he
condi ion hey we e assigned o, pa icipan s expe ienced
he e ie al phase in he mVR o he iVR modali y (see
Fig. 1b). In bo h modali ies, he p e iously eco ded ins uc-
ion was p esen ed h ough he headphones. Du ing he old/
new ecogni ion ask, he pa icipan s we e p esen ed wi h
all 120 ideos in andom o de , esul ing in 60 old and 60
new ideos. E e y ideo was played a leas o one sec-
ond and a maximum o en seconds, and none o he id-
eos was epea edly p esen ed. The pa icipan s’ ask was o
indica e whe he o no hey emembe ed he scene om
he encoding session by p essing he co esponding bu on
as as as possible (see Fig. 1b). Immedia ely a e he bu -
on p ess, he cu en ideo was skipped and he nex ideo
was p esen ed, esul ing in a ying p esen a ion imes o he
espec i e ideos du ing e ie al. When pa icipan s did
no answe wi hin en seconds, he ideo was paused un il
hey ga e an answe . Following he old/new ecogni ion
ask, pa icipan s again had o ill in he Ge man e sion o
he IPQ and we e asked o symp oms o mo ion sickness,
i.e., headache, nausea, and dizziness.
2.4 Da a analysis
2.4.1 Di e ences be ween condi ions
To accoun o po en ial he e ogenei y be ween pa icipan s
in he ou expe imen al condi ions, we analyzed whe he
age and gende di e ed be ween condi ions. Age was in es-
iga ed by means o a one-way ANOVA wi h he ac o
Condi ion (media ed, c oss-up, c oss-down, imme si e),
whe eas gende was analyzed using a χ2- es . Addi ion-
ally, po en ial di e ences in symp oms o mo ion sickness
be ween condi ions we e in es iga ed by means o χ2- es s
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Vi ual Reali y (2025) 29:128
condi ions (χ2(3) = 0.32, p =.955, V = 0.052). Addi ionally,
he equency o symp oms o mo ion sickness did no di -
e be ween condi ions (all χ2s ≤ 2.01, all ps ≥ 0.571, see
Supplemen a y Ma e ial Table S1), excep o he headache
symp om du ing e ie al (χ2(3) = 9.35, p =.025, V = 0.277,
see Supplemen a y Ma e ial Table S2 o he equencies o
he mo ion sickness symp oms in each condi ion).
3.2 Memo y pe o mance
Fo memo y pe o mance, a signi ican main e ec o he
ac o Encoding Modali y (FEncoding Modali y(1, 118) = 15.85,
p <.001; η2 = 0.118), a signi ican main e ec o he ac o
Re ie al Modali y (FRe ie al Modali y(1, 118) = 7.21, p =.008;
η2 = 0.058), and a signi ican in e ac ion o bo h ac o s
(FEncoding Modali y × Re ie al Modali y(1, 118) = 24.35, p <.001;
η2 = 0.171) we e ob ained.
Pos -hoc - es s u he speci ying he in e ac ion e ec
e ealed be e memo y pe o mance o pa icipan s in
condi ions media ed, imme si e and c oss-down in com-
pa ison o condi ion c oss-up (all s ≥|4.50|, all ps < 0.001,
see Table 1; Fig. 2).
Addi ionally, he equi alence es (TOST) e ealed sig-
ni ican esul s o all non-signi ican g oup di e ences
ega ding memo y pe o mance (d’) epo ed in Table 1 (all
s ≥|3.28|, all ps < 0.001, see Table 2), indica ing ha mem-
o y pe o mance can be conside ed equal compa ing condi-
ions media ed, c oss-down and imme si e.
3.3 P esence
The independen - es s compa ing p esence be ween he
mVR and iVR modali ies on bo h days sugges a highe sense
o p esence in iVR compa ed o mVR indica ed by he IPQ
subscales. Excep o Spa ial P esence in he encoding phase
days we e compa ed be ween he mVR and he iVR modali-
ies using independen samples - es s.
To assess a po en ial modi ica ion o he sense o p esence
om he i s measu emen o he second measu emen as a
unc ion o he encoding modali y, each IPQ subscale was
analyzed using a mixed ANOVA wi h he wi hin-subjec s ac-
o Timepoin (Day 1, Day 2) and he be ween-subjec s ac-
o Condi ion (media ed, c oss-up, c oss-down, imme si e).
Signi ican esul s we e u he analyzed by co esponding
independen samples - es s o IPQ a ings on he second day
o he expe imen , wi h a Bon e oni-co ec ed signi icance
le el.
To in es iga e whe he memo y pe o mance in he ou
condi ions can be p edic ed by he le el o p esence du ing
encoding o e ie al, eigh mul iple linea eg essions we e
pe o med using all IPQ subscales on day one o on day
wo as p edic o a iables and he d’ sco es sepa a ely by
condi ion as dependen a iables. The ollowing eg ession
equa ion was modelled o each o he ou expe imen al con-
di ions o day one and day wo, espec i ely:
d′=a+b
Gene al P esence ×
x
Gene al P esence
+bSpa ial P esence ×x
Spa ial P esence
+bIn ol emen ×xIn ol emen
+bRealness ×xRealness.
3 Resul s
3.1 Di e ences be ween condi ions
No di e ences ega ding he pa icipan s’ age we e obse ed
be ween he ou condi ions (FCondi ion(3, 118) = 0.19,
p =.905; η2 = 0.005). Simila ly, he χ2- es did no e eal
any di e ences ega ding gende balance be ween he
Table 1 Tes s a is ics o pos -hoc independen samples - es s ega ding memo y pe o mance (d’) be ween all condi ions (media ed, c oss-up,
c oss-down and imme si e). A Bon e oni-co ec ed signi icance le el was applied
G oup s a is ics Independen samples es
M SD d pCohens da
Media ed 1.54 0.34 5.48 60 < 0.001 1.39
C oss-up 0.99 0.44
Media ed 1.54 0.34 0.72 57 0.475 0.19
C oss-down 1.47 0.39
Media ed 1.54 0.34 –0.97 59 0.338 − 0.25
Imme si e 1.63 0.41
C oss-up 0.99 0.44 − 4.50 59 < 0.001 − 1.15
C oss-down 1.47 0.39
C oss-up 0.99 0.44 − 6.01 61 < 0.001 − 1.51
Imme si e 1.63 0.41
C oss-down 1.47 0.39 − 1.57 58 0.123 − 0.40
Imme si e 1.63 0.41
aCohen’s d uses he pooled s anda d de ia ion.
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Vi ual Reali y (2025) 29:128
Pos hoc - es s e ealed ha he sense o Gene al P esence
and Spa ial P esence du ing he e ie al phase we e highe
in he c oss-up condi ion compa ed o he media ed, c oss-
down and imme si e condi ions (all s ≥|3.06|, all ps < 0.001,
see Supplemen a y Ma e ial Table S3). Addi ionally, he
sense o Realness du ing he e ie al phase was highe in he
c oss-up condi ion in compa ison o he c oss-down condi-
ion ( (59) = 3.68, p <.001, o all pos -hoc compa isons see
Supplemen a y Ma e ial Table S3).
The mul iple linea eg essions de e mining whe he he d’
sco es can be p edic ed by he le el o p esence sepa a ely o
bo h days in all ou condi ions yielded no signi ican esul s
(all ps ≥ 0.214, see Supplemen a y Ma e ial Tables S4 and
S5).
4 Discussion
The aim o he s udy was o cla i y whe he expe iences in
Vi ual Reali y (VR) in ol e modali y-speci ic mnemonic
p ocesses ha a e dis inc om hose ypically obse ed
unde 2D labo a o y condi ions, when me iculously
( (120) = − 1.73, p =.087), all u he IPQ a ings yielded sig-
ni ican esul s (all s ≥|2.07|, all ps ≤ 0.041; see Table 3).
The mixed ANOVA e ealed a signi ican in e ac ion
be ween he ac o s Timepoin and Condi ion o all sub-
scales o he IPQ (Gene al P esence: FTimepoin *Condi ion(3,
118) = 28.55, p < 0.001; η2 = 0.421; Spa ial P esence:
FTimepoin *Condi ion(3,118) = 14.43, p < 0.001; η2 = 0.268;
In ol emen : FTimepoin *Condi ion(3,118) = 6.28, p < 0.001;
η2 = 0.138; Realness: FTimepoin *Condi ion(3,118) = 28.82,
p < 0.001; η2 = 0.423).
Table 2 Tes s a is ics o Welch wo sample - es (TOST) o non-
signi ican compa isons o memo y pe o mance (d’) be ween he con-
di ions
G oup S a is ics TOST
M SD d p
Media ed 1.54 0.34 − 4.5 55.44 < 0.001
C oss-down 1.47 0.39
Media ed 1.54 0.34 4.23 57.75 < 0.001
Imme si e 1.63 0.41
C oss-down 1.47 0.39 3.28 57.98 < 0.001
Imme si e 1.63 0.41
Fig.2 Compa ison o memo y pe o mance (d’) be ween all ou con-
di ions (encoding in mVR and e ie al in mVR (media ed), encoding
in mVR and e ie al in iVR (c oss-up), encoding in iVR and e ie al
in mVR (c oss-down), and encoding in iVR and e ie al in iVR
(imme si e)). Memo y pe o mance (d’) was signi ican ly enhanced
o pa icipan s in condi ions media ed, imme si e and c oss-down in
compa ison o condi ion c oss-up (all ps <.001). S anda d e o s a e
depic ed by e o ba s.
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Vi ual Reali y (2025) 29:128
ma kedly dis inc om hose p edominan ly s udied in labo-
a o y se ings. The enhancemen in memo y pe o mance
obse ed can he e o e be a ibu ed o he unique unc ional
cha ac e is ics o mnemonic p ocesses in imme si e VR
en i onmen s.
F om a p ac ical s andpoin , ou esul s sugges ha
o asks in ended o be ca ied ou in h ee-dimensional
space, lea ning ou comes a e signi ican ly enhanced when
aining o lea ning occu s in an iden ical o simila h ee-
dimensional en i onmen . This unde sco es he limi ed
ans e abili y o lea ned con en om wo-dimensional
o h ee-dimensional con ex s and highligh s he unique
cogni i e p ocesses in ol ed in lea ning in imme si e
en i onmen s.
The esul s a e in line wi h p e ious VR s udies show-
ing ha in con as o con en ional 2D pa adigms, di e en
mechanisms a e employed o encode (B éche e al. 2019;
I iye and S . Jacques 2021; Johnsdo e al. 2023a, b; Kiske
e al. 2024; Kou esis e al. 2021) and o e ie e con en
in imme si e en i onmen s (Reggen e e al. 2018). In com-
pa ison o he encoding o 2D s imuli, a b oade co ical
ne wo k associa ed wi h mul imodal in eg a ion is in ol ed
du ing he encoding o complex i ual s imuli (Johnsdo
e al. 2023a, b). Mo eo e , he e ie al o imme si e VR
expe iences in a classic old/new EEG pa adigm e ealed
ha e en when he e ie al modali y ollows he con en-
ional 2D p esen a ion, he mnemonic mechanisms di e
o he ex en ha he usually cha ac e is ic di e ence in he
he a band esponse o old and new s imuli was no obse ed
a e VR-based encoding (Kiske e al. 2021c). This is pa -
icula ly ema kable as he he a-based co ico-hippocampal
con olling o he e ec s o he VR head-moun ed display
(VR-HMD) on memo y pe o mance. D awing on p e ious
esea ch, we hypo hesized ha hese unique mnemonic p o-
cesses would be mani es ed h ough enhanced e ie al suc-
cess. Acco dingly, we compa ed he e ie al success o he
same s imulus ma e ial inciden ally encoded in imme si e
VR (iVR) o in media ed VR (mVR), using a VR-HMD in
all condi ions. This design allowed us o de e mine whe he
VR me ely se es as a con ex o encoding o e ie al, o
indeed acili a es a unique o m o mnemonic p ocessing.
Gene ally, he canonical con ex e ec , i.e., an ad an-
age o memo y pe o mance de i ed om he cong uency
o encoding and e ie al con ex s (Godden and Bad-
deley 1975), was eplica ed o bo h he media ed and he
imme si e condi ion as pa icipan s exhibi ed equally high
memo y pe o mance. Ye mos impo an ly, we ound ha
expe iences ecalled in mVR esul ed in he same e ie al
success when encoded in iVR as hose encoded in mVR. In
o he wo ds, encoding in iVR no only enhances mnemonic
p ocessing bu also achie es ecall success a he le el o
con ex e ec s o s imuli encoded and ecalled in mVR.
To ou bes knowledge, his is he i s s udy o igo ously
con ol o he e ec s o he HMD and he gene al impac
o being in VR. Ou indings p o ide solid e idence ha
he enhanced memo y pe o mance o en obse ed in VR
se ings is no me ely a echnological a i ac ha can be
a ibu ed o he VR se ing i sel . Mos impo an ly, he
da a e eals ha enhanced memo y e ie al o iVR expe i-
ences s ems om he encoding s age in iVR and does no
solely ely on he e ie al s age. Thus, expe iencing e en s
in iVR acili a es a o m o mnemonic p ocessing ha is
Table 3 Tes s a is ics o independen samples - es s ega ding p esence (all IPQ subscales) in he modali ies mVR and iVR on bo h days
G oup S a is ics Independen Samples -Tes
M SD d pCohens da
Day 1
Gene al P esence mVR 4.58 1.56 − 2.28 120 0.025 − 0.41
Gene al P esence iVR 5.22 1.52
Spa ial P esence mVR 4.69 1.08 − 1.73 120 0.087 − 0.31
Spa ial P esence iVR 5.02 0.98
In ol emen mVR 4.27 1.40 − 3.09 120 0.002 − 0.56
In ol emen iVR 5.01 1.23
Realness mVR 3.41 0.97 − 4.02 120 < 0.001 − 0.73
Realness iVR 4.10 0.95
Day 2
Gene al P esence mVR 3.97 1.59 − 5.10 120 < 0.001 − 0.93
Gene al P esence iVR 5.37 1.44
Spa ial P esence mVR 4.32 1.20 − 4.33 120 < 0.001 − 0.78
Spa ial P esence iVR 5.20 1.05
In ol emen mVR 4.41 1.57 − 2.07 120 0.041 − 0.37
In ol emen iVR 4.95 1.32
Realness mVR 3.33 1.41 − 3.50 120 < 0.001 − 0.63
Realness iVR 4.02 1.05
aCohen’s d uses he pooled s anda d de ia ion.
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Vi ual Reali y (2025) 29:128
li elike au obiog aphical memo y p ocesses. Ou knowl-
edge abou said p ocesses could u he mo e be ex ended
by combining his unique app oach wi h elec ophysiologi-
cal me hods, e.g., elec oencephalog aphy, o neu oimag-
ing me hods, e.g., unc ional magne ic esonance imaging.
U ilizing VR o c ea e con olled li elike au obiog aphical
scena ios he e o e p o ides he po en ial o in es iga e
mnemonic p ocessing no only on he beha io al bu also
on he neu al le el. Ye de eloping i ual en i onmen s
o psychological expe imen s equi es he app op ia e
echnological and me hodological expe ise. In designing a
s udy in ol ing VR, i is c ucial o ca e ully conside bo h
echnological aspec s and cha ac e is ics o he i ual en i-
onmen , as hese ac o s migh in luence he na u e o he
mnemonic p ocesses exhibi ed ( o e iew see Smi h 2019).
Whe eas echnological ad ancemen s migh educe hese
es ain s by minimizing he e o o c ea e app op ia e i -
ual en i onmen s in he u u e, i is impo an no o neglec
e hical conside a ions ega ding VR esea ch. Since VR
can elici li elike emo ional, physiological, and beha io al
eac ions (e.g Kiske e al. 2021a; Kiske e al. 2021a, b, c,
d), esea che s should be awa e o he po en ial de imen-
al consequences o expe iencing ealis ic i ual scena ios,
in pa icula hose o a s ong nega i e alence. The e o e,
when de eloping VR esea ch, he po en ial cogni i e and
beha io al consequences o VR expe iences (Mada y and
Me zinge 2016) should be add essed in he ligh o e hical
conside a ions.
Al hough we main ained he a i icial se ial p esen a ion
o he i ual scenes, ou s udy suppo s he idea ha iVR
en i onmen s enhance he sense o p esence, wi h his e ec
being pa ially mo e p onounced when a less imme si e en i-
onmen has p e iously been encoun e ed. While he ela ion
be ween an inc eased sense o p esence and memo y pe o -
mance has been epea edly discussed in p e ious esea ch
( o e iew see Smi h 2019), a di ec s a is ical ela ionship
be ween p esence and memo y pe o mance emains elusi e
in ou esul s. Howe e , he absence o his ela ion in ou da a
is consis en wi h p e ious indings showing ha while di -
e en manipula ions o imme sion in VR en i onmen s ha e
a ying e ec s on memo y and p esence, he e is no de ini-
i e e idence ha he subjec i e sense o p esence media es
he impac o imme sion on episodic memo y pe o mance
(Smi h and Mulligan 2021). Po en ially, p esence ques ion-
nai es like he IPQ (Schube e al. 2001) o he ITC-Sense o
P esence In en o y (Lessi e e al. 2001) do no ully co e he
c i ical aspec o p esence ha indeed acili a es he o ma-
ion o au obiog aphical memo y. Al hough signi ican posi-
i e co ela ions be ween di e en p esence ques ionnai es
could be obse ed (Kobe and Neupe 2013), he in luence o
a ious ac o s can cause inconsis encies in esul s ega ding
p esence assessed wi h hose ques ionnai es (e.g., G a and
in e play is hypo hesized o unde lie many di e en ypes
o memo y, wi h episodic memo y being one o he mos
ho oughly s udied ones (Tul ing 2002).
Mos s udies in es iga ing episodic memo y assume
ha he same cogni i e p ocesses a e elici ed by p esen -
ing pa icipan s wi h images on a compu e sc een du ing
encoding o e ie al ha occu unde eal-li e condi ions.
Howe e , p e ious s udies ha e shown minimal o e lap in
b ain egion ac i a ion be ween labo a o y-based and eal-
li e memo y expe imen s (Monge e al. 2018). This disc ep-
ancy is unde s andable, as labo a o y asks o en p esen
a i icial e en s lacking pe sonal meaning, whe eas eal-li e
e en s a e mul imodal and signi ican , occu ing in physical
p oximi y. Labo a o y e en s usually only a ec he isual
domain, se ing as eminde s o p e iously expe ienced
e en s (Ma co i and Jacques 2018).
S udying hese labo a o y e en s has signi ican ly
ad anced ou unde s anding o mnemonic p ocesses and
b ain unc ioning. The pa adigm o sho se ial s imuli p e-
sen a ion is cen al o psychological science, especially wi h
psychophysiological measu emen s ha ely on epea ed
p esen a ion o s imuli. Unlike eal-li e expe imen s, s an-
da d pa adigms o e unpa alleled expe imen al con ol and
ep oducibili y, which a e undamen al o psychological
science. Howe e , we should also ecognize his con en-
ional app oach’s limi a ions. S imuli o en se e me ely as
eminde s, which can signi ican ly obscu e he ue na u e
o p ocessing hem (Snow and Culham 2021), he eby
se e ely dec easing ou abili y o gene alize om labo a-
o y o eal-li e se ings. Howe e , ha does no imply ha
we canno gene alize o ce ain eal-li e condi ions bu ha
we should be mo e conscious o wha ou pa adigms a e
in es iga ing, and exe cise cau ion in o e -gene alizing. Fo
example, wa ching pic u es o ideos on a compu e sc een
is a signi ican pa o ou li es as we cons an ly engage wi h
moni o s. Ye , i is c ucial o esea ch o acknowledge ha
i is speci ically his aspec o ou daily li es ha is being
in es iga ed wi h moni o -based pa adigms.
Towa ds a mo e imme si e app oach in psychological
science enhancing ecological alidi y, we c ea ed a pa a-
digm ha b idges he gap be ween classic o con en ional
pa adigms and eal-li e expe iences. On he one hand, we
main ained he se ial p esen a ion o s imuli, on he o he
hand we used pho o ealis ic, i.e., imme si e s imuli o c e-
a e a ealis ic en i onmen . The main ained se ial p esen-
a ion o he i ual en i onmen s mos ly con adic s he
p obabilis ic dis ibu ion o ou daily li e expe iences as
scenes do no change ha d as ically wi hin a ac ion o
a second. Ne e heless, his combina ion o con en ional
and imme si e aspec s o he pa adigm seems o achie e an
op imal balance whe e expe imen al con ol is s ill high bu
he mnemonic p ocesses in es iga ed di e and esemble
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