VR 2012 tutorial: Quantitative and qualitative methods for human-subject experiments in Virtual and Augmented Reality

Abstract

This tutorial is for researchers and engineers, working in the field of Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR), who wish to conduct user-based experiments with a specific aim of promoting both traditional quantitative human-subject experiments and qualitative methods for assessing usability. This tutorial is for a full-day tutorial presenting both quantitative and qualitative approaches to conducting human-subject experiments. It covers (1) the basic principles of experimental design and analysis, with an emphasis on human-subject experiments in VR/AR; (2) qualitative studies (e.g., formative evaluation methods) for assessing and improving VR/AR user interfaces and user interaction along with lessons learned from conducting many user-based studies; and (3) a “journalistic approach” to measuring human performance that organizes the activity around questions such as “Who? What? When? Where? How? and Why?”.