Srushti Satoskar

Introduction

This project explores the intersection of colour psychology and educational virtual reality (VR) design. With the growing adoption of VR in education, especially post-pandemic, the study focuses on how colour schemes within VR environments influence student’s cognitive performance, emotional responses, and sense of presence during learning activities

Research Gaps

High levels of VR immersion can overwhelm student’s cognitive capacities, reducing learning outcomes (Cuban 1986; Pollard et al. 2020).
The challenge is to design VR-specific frameworks rather than replicating traditional classroom experiences (Lege and Bonner 2020).
The impact of colour on emotions and cognitive functions in VR is under-researched, with the potential to improve presence and engagement (Xia et al. 2023).
Most studies have focused on one single colour, the properties of colour (hue, chroma, brightness), or one interior element (walls), neglecting other environmental factors that affect cognition (Llinares et al. 2021; Liu et al. 2022; Jang and Choi 2023)

What the Project Aimed to Answer

How do different colour schemes in VR educational environments impact students’ cognitive functions – attention and memory?
How do varying colour schemes affect the sense of presence and emotional responses in VR educational experiences?

Design Thinking for Prototype Development

The Design Thinking methodology, consisting of five key phases – Empathize, Define, Ideate, Prototype, and Test, was employed as a strategic framework to tackle the aim. An iterative process of ideation, Prototyping, and Testing was used to answer the research questions

How the Prototype Works?

A VR classroom environment was developed to simulate real-world educational settings. The prototype includes two distinct classroom designs:

Warm Colour Scheme: Earthy tones designed to simulate cognitive engagement.
Cool Colour Scheme: Calming blues and greens aimed at reducing cognitive strain.

The Munsell colour system is a three-dimensional notation system developed in 1905 by Albert Munsell.

The research opted for the Munsell Colour system over any other because it offers a precise and standardised definition of colours which is crucial for assessing the impact of colour on both cognitive performance and emotions. The colours were chosen based on a combination of colours with different hues and chromas: 8 different hues for each colour scheme, a total of 16 configurations.

Participants in the study watch a lecture video in the VR classroom, followed by a series of memory and attention-based tasks to assess their cognitive performance. The study measures emotional responses using heart rate monitors and self-reported feedback to analyze the impact of the environment on learning and engagement.

Prototype A: Warm Colour Schemed simulated educational setting.

Prototype B: Cool Colour Schemed simulated educational setting.

The virtual simulation was designed using Sketchfab, Blender, and Frame VR software.

Testing the Prototype

The study was conducted at Loughborough University over 60 minutes in a quiet setting. 30 Participants were recruited who first completed a D-15 colour vision test to confirm normal colour recognition. After briefing and consent, they wore an Apple Watch to monitor heart rate before, during, and after the experiment.

The study had two sessions:

Session 1: Participants adapted to the VR environment, and then watched an 8-minute video using a VR headset. Afterwards, they completed questionnaires to record emotions and sense of presence.
Session 2: Participants engaged with interactive tasks based on the video. The researcher, acting as a “Professor,” was present to assist. The session concluded with an exit interview to gather feedback.

This structured approach aimed to assess cognitive functions and emotional responses in the VR environment.

Key Findings

The research revealed that:

Cognitive Performance: The warm colour scheme enhanced attention and memory, with participants making fewer task errors as compared to the cool-coloured environment.
Sense of Presence: Both environments successfully engaged participants, but no notable difference was observed in immersion based on colour alone.
Emotional Responses: No significant differences were found between warm and cool colour schemes regarding emotional reactions or heart rate.

Design Recommendations

Based on the findings, warm colour schemes demonstrated cognitive benefits that stress the need to consider environmental design in educational VR settings. These findings have the potential to guide the development of more effective VR learning environments by focusing on those colours that more strongly engage cognitive processing. However, the inconclusive findings on emotional response and presence need further research on how different sensory elements—apart from colour—intersect to define feelings of immersion in VR.

Conclusion

This project highlights the importance of colour in educational VR design, particularly in fostering better cognitive engagement. While the results provide insights into optimizing VR environments, further studies are needed to investigate the broader implications of colour on emotions and presence in immersive learning. The current study is yet to be useful for a wide range of professionals involved in the design of research into teaching spaces and VR.

Introduction

Key Findings

Other Work