Can an Environmental Feature Influence Interview Anxiety?: A Virtual Reality Study

Abstract

This paper presents a study using a virtual reality-based methodology that aims to investigate the effect of nature-like surroundings on interview anxiety. For this, sixty-three volunteers were asked to participate in a study in which a job interview was simulated in a virtual environment. An experimental condition – an office with a nature-like surroundings, and a control condition – without nature-like surroundings, were considered in a between subject design experiment. Self-perceived anxiety and emotional arousal were the dependent variables. Main findings suggests Main results suggest that nature-like surroundings can positively influence IA for men, whereas it negatively influences IA for women. Nature-like surroundings lowered men’s concerns regarding their communication and behavioral IA and on the other hand enhanced female’s performance IA. These findings are of great interest and can be seen as a step forward towards the understanding of gender differences amongst automatic nonconscious emotion regulation strategies.