Virtual, Augmented, and Mixed Reality Interventions for Physical Activity: A Systematic Review

Abstract

The emergence of Virtual Reality (VR), Augmented Reality (AR) and Mixed Reality (MR) technologies have made it possible to actualize many things in virtual space that may have cost more to explore in real-life settings. Such technologies have significantly contributed to human health and well-being over the years and they recently gained research attention in promoting physical activities across all age groups. This paper presents a systematic review of VR/AR/MR applications for promoting physical activity (PA). We reviewed 39 papers from 5 databases that met the inclusion criteria. The review results show that (1) VR-driven interventions were more common than AR and MR interventions, (2) more interventions were targeted toward the general public, (3) most interventions adopted exergames as the approach for designing their systems, (4) the self-monitoring strategy emerged as the most used persuasive strategy while tailoring was the least used strategy, and (5) the majority of the interventions were perceived to be effective in promoting PA. We propose that future AR/VR/MR interventions should investigate skill-building goals through systems that provide dynamic feedback to the target audience. This will allow participants to gain experience and skills to promote their physical health.