Optimizing locomotion techniques in virtual reality: a comparative analysis of posture, interaction freedom, and methods

Virtual reality (VR) has emerged as a powerful tool in cognitive rehabilitation and elderly care, offering immersive environments for therapy. However, motion sickness and user comfort remain challenges, especially for users who must engage with VR while lying down. This study investigates the impact of different locomotion methods (steering and teleportation) with varying freedoms of interaction (free and preset) across three postures (standing, sitting, lying) on user experience in VR. Twenty-five university students (mean age = 23.67 ± 1.74 years) took part in this study. Subjective measures include motion sickness, workload, sense of presence, spatial perception, and user preferences, while objective measures assess task performance. Results indicate that steering enhances presence and spatial cognition, whereas teleportation reduces motion sickness and workload. Lying posture shows promise for symptom mitigation, with spatial cognition unaffected by posture. Our findings suggest that adapting existing locomotion methods for lying posture is feasible, provided auxiliary rotation methods are available.