Perception of window views in VR: Impact of display and type of motion on subjective and physiological responses

This study investigates the effect of dynamic and static representations of window views on visual perception in a virtual reality environment. Across two experimental sessions, participants were exposed to fifteen different views-out scenes of passive natural movement, pedestrian activities, and vehicular traffic, presented both as dynamic videos and still images. Participant impressions were collected through numerical ratings and verbal feedback, in addition to measurements of physiological responses and eye movement patterns. The experiment identified three key findings: (1) enhanced visual engagement, reflected in longer fixation duration and higher fixation count, for videos of human and traffic movements; (2) stronger preference for scenes with pedestrian movement compared to passive or traffic movements, where images of human motion elicited greater physiological arousal; and (3) higher perceptual ratings for images of passive movement, despite videos of passive movement being observed for longer durations. These findings highlight the importance of dynamically representing movement and considering diverse types of movements to improve realism and validity in views-out research. The outcome of this study aims to contribute to advancing future building science research by revealing the importance of capturing more dimensions in the visual experience of building occupants.