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The effects of a researcher’s presence during VR experiments

Siljehav Ozimek, Sebastian LU and Nilsson, Niclas LU (2026) In LUTVDG/TVBB VBRM01 20261
Division of Fire Safety Engineering
Abstract
The aim of this study is to investigate if a researchers presence affects participants performing a virtual
reality evacuation, and if by removing the researcher, the results better resemble the results produced
in a real world experiment. Initially, a study on previous research in human behaviour in fire, the
effect of a researcher's presence and Virtual reality experiments was conducted. 54 participants,
divided into two groups, performed experiments in VR. One group had a researcher present in the
room, and the other group of participants were left alone during the experiment. While the participants
performed the experiment, a virtual fire alarm would sound and their reactions to the alarm were
documented. At the end of the... (More)
The aim of this study is to investigate if a researchers presence affects participants performing a virtual
reality evacuation, and if by removing the researcher, the results better resemble the results produced
in a real world experiment. Initially, a study on previous research in human behaviour in fire, the
effect of a researcher's presence and Virtual reality experiments was conducted. 54 participants,
divided into two groups, performed experiments in VR. One group had a researcher present in the
room, and the other group of participants were left alone during the experiment. While the participants
performed the experiment, a virtual fire alarm would sound and their reactions to the alarm were
documented. At the end of the experiment, all participants answered three questions verbally while
still being in VR. The results from the different groups were then compared. The results from this
experiment showed that by removing the researcher from the room, the number of participants reacting
to the fire alarm when in a virtual environment increased. Thus producing results that closer resemble
the results from the real world experiment done by Arias et al. (2025). This suggests that the physical
presence of a researcher may influence participant behavior in VR experiments. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
Siljehav Ozimek, Sebastian LU and Nilsson, Niclas LU
supervisor
organization
course
VBRM01 20261
year
type
M2 - Bachelor Degree
subject
keywords
Virtual Reality, experiments in Virtual Reality, researchers influence during experiments, human behaviour, impact on participants, fire alarm
publication/series
LUTVDG/TVBB
report number
5768
other publication id
LUTVDG/TVBB--5768--SE
language
English
id
9233527
date added to LUP
2026-06-10 07:15:57
date last changed
2026-06-10 07:15:57
@misc{9233527,
  abstract     = {{The aim of this study is to investigate if a researchers presence affects participants performing a virtual
reality evacuation, and if by removing the researcher, the results better resemble the results produced
in a real world experiment. Initially, a study on previous research in human behaviour in fire, the
effect of a researcher's presence and Virtual reality experiments was conducted. 54 participants,
divided into two groups, performed experiments in VR. One group had a researcher present in the
room, and the other group of participants were left alone during the experiment. While the participants
performed the experiment, a virtual fire alarm would sound and their reactions to the alarm were
documented. At the end of the experiment, all participants answered three questions verbally while
still being in VR. The results from the different groups were then compared. The results from this
experiment showed that by removing the researcher from the room, the number of participants reacting
to the fire alarm when in a virtual environment increased. Thus producing results that closer resemble
the results from the real world experiment done by Arias et al. (2025). This suggests that the physical
presence of a researcher may influence participant behavior in VR experiments.}},
  author       = {{Siljehav Ozimek, Sebastian and Nilsson, Niclas}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  series       = {{LUTVDG/TVBB}},
  title        = {{The effects of a researcher’s presence during VR experiments}},
  year         = {{2026}},
}