Awe and Curiosity: Harnessing the Potential of VR for Student Inquiry

Overview

Curiosity drives learning, and immersive technology has the potential to transform how people engage with complex topics. This research project explored the use of virtual reality (VR) to spark moments of awe and inspire information-seeking behaviors. By analyzing how different VR experiences influenced curiosity, the project aimed to inform the design of educational and commercial immersive experiences that captivate users and encourage deeper engagement.

Problem Statement

Traditional educational methods struggle to create awe-inspiring, curiosity-driven experiences due to logistical and financial limitations—students can’t take field trips to the moon or shrink down to explore the human body. As VR technology becomes more accessible, it presents an opportunity to bridge this gap. This study investigated which VR experiences best stimulated awe and curiosity, and how those emotions influenced users' information-seeking behaviors. The findings provide insights for designing more engaging and effective immersive experiences in both education and entertainment.

Users & Audience

We studied undergraduate students at a midwestern university, recruiting from Communication, Education, and New Media courses based on their interest in the subject and technology. Our findings inform the design of VR learning tools that support inquiry-based learning, aligning with literacy frameworks that emphasize the importance of immersing students in research projects.

Roles & Responsibilities

This exploratory study had a small sample size and was conducted in a controlled lab setting using pre-made VR content, which limited the ability to manipulate variables in real-world scenarios. These constraints, along with the absence of formal power analysis and counterbalanced order effects, impacted the study's ability to detect broader trends. Additionally, the demographic homogeneity of the sample (predominantly white college students) may limit generalizability. Despite these limitations, the study provides valuable insights that can inform the development of VR-based learning tools and drive future improvements in user experience research.

Research Process

I designed the study by selecting six VR experiences across different themes, including science, nature, and history, to explore how awe and curiosity interact. The participants engaged with the VR content in a laboratory setting under controlled conditions, where they completed immediate response questionnaires to capture their initial reactions.

Three example stimuli presented as 360-degree videos on an Oculus Quest 2.

To track the information seeking behaviors of the participants over time, I implemented a follow-up questionnaire 24 hours later. I also conducted interviews with eight participants who had voluntarily sought additional information, allowing me to gain deeper insights into their motivations and thought processes.

Summary of laboratory data collection. Data was also collected 24-hours latter in follow-up questionnaires.

The data analysis involved both quantitative and qualitative methods. For the quantitative analysis, I applied descriptive statistics and mixed-effects logistic regressions to examine variables like awe, curiosity, and exploration intentions. These statistical methods helped identify the most awe-inspiring and curiosity-provoking stimuli.

-For this study, the descriptive statistics were used to initially assess which elicitors were the most awe-inspiring and/or curiosity provoking over time. Inferential statistics then helped me to determine the comparative odds of participants reporting high levels of awe and/or curiosity from each video.

For the qualitative analysis, I used Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis to analyze responses from the laboratory data, follow-up questionnaires, and interviews. In the laboratory data, I identified two main themes from 62 descriptive codes, 10 linguistic codes, and 3 conceptual codes. The follow-up questionnaire revealed key themes derived from 45 descriptive codes and 5 conceptual codes. In the interviews, I distilled 50 statements into 5 overarching themes, which helped me uncover the deeper patterns in the participants' experiences.

Interpretative phenomenological analysis guided the qualitative coding process. This case study highlights four significant interview themes.

Outcomes and Lessons Learned

While participants found awe-inspiring VR visually captivating and mysterious, we found that awe alone did not consistently drive curiosity. Instead, participants were more focused on the sensory and immersive aspects, often re-experiencing the visuals rather than seeking further context.

For some participants, information about an awe elicitor was just unnecessary. As Bethany simply put it, “I mean, Google is cool, but I like to experience things.” 

Key insights include the importance of selecting VR experiences that provide perceptual envelopment, access to inaccessible spaces, and unexplained phenomena to spark curiosity. However, awe can be unpredictable, so educators should provide additional context to balance the experience and avoid relying on intuitive explanations.

In hindsight, we learned that awe can support inquiry, but it needs to be carefully coupled with elements like surprise or mystery to effectively drive information-seeking behaviors.