Effects of Voluntary Heart Rate Control on User Engagement in Virtual Reality

The usage of biofeedback in Virtual Reality (VR) is becoming more and more important in providing fully immersive experiences. With the rapid evolution of physiological monitoring technologies it is important to study how different modalities of biofeedback can alter user experience. While previous studies use biofeedback as an additional interaction mechanic. We created a protocol to assess heart rate control competency and used the results of said protocol to immerse our participants in a VR experience where the biofeedback mechanics are mandatory to complete a game. We observed consistent results between our competency scale and the participants' mastery of the biofeedback game mechanic in the VR experience. We also found that the biofeedback mechanic has a significant impact on engagement.