Does scaling player size skew one's ability to correctly evaluate object sizes in a virtual environment?

Abstract

This study attempts to evaluate whether a navigation technique based on scaling the user's avatar impacts the user's ability to correctly assess the size of virtual objects in a virtual environment. This study was realized during the CERN Open Days with data from 177 participants over eighteen years old. We were able to observe well-established phenomena such as the effect of inter-pupillary distance (IPD) on perception of scale, as well as original results associated with scaling factor and avatar embodiment. We observed that the user is more prone to overestimate object sizes from the Virtual Environment (VE) when provided with an avatar, while scaling the IPD according to the scale of the user's avatar contributes to a reduction in the overestimation of object sizes within the VE.