Parallel Adaptation: Switching between Two Virtual Bodies with Different Perspectives Enables Dual Motor Adaptation

Author

Verhulst, Adrien and Namikawa, Yasuko and Kasahara, Shunichi

Abstract

Virtual Reality (VR) lets us experiment embodiment. Here we investigate dual embodiment under the prism of dual motor adaptation. We asked participants (N=21) to perform reaching motions in VR with opposite gradual visuomotor perturbations. The participants sequentially switched between 2 VR bodies and had to adapt to the VR body’s perturbation (up to +15° for the VR bodyA, and-15° for the VR bodyB). We then designed a 2×2 within-subject study: 1 factor being the perspective (1st person or 3rd person), and 1 factor being the head rotation (without head rotation before the reaching motion or with head rotation before the reaching motion). We found that by providing strong visual cues between bodies (alternating symmetric perspective and/or symmetric head rotation), participants had little awareness of the perturbations, good adaptation, and large aftereffects in both VR bodies. Those elements are consistent with implicit dual adaptation. In contrast, a naive 1st person perspective resulted in little to no adaptation with a high cognitive load and no aftereffects.

DOI

https://doi.org/10.1109/ismar55827.2022.00031