Comparing Perceived Restorativeness and Stress Reduction in Virtual Reality Environments Using Abstract Fractal Geometries Versus Realistic Natural Landscapes.

Stress and its related mental conditions are an increasing concern in modern societies. Natural settings have been shown to reduce stress and anxiety levels and help restore lost physical-psychological resources. The Perceptual Fluency Account associates this restorative potential with nature’s fractal characteristics, which facilitate their visual processing. While many studies have shown the value of Virtual Reality Nature for stress reduction and even treatment, no study of Virtual Reality fractal abstract worlds for restoration has been found. We question whether an abstract fractal-based environment can have similar restorative effects to a realistic nature-based environment in Virtual Reality. A total of 39 participants took part in two studies. In the first one, two groups (N = 19) of participants performed a collecting task in a fractal- or nature-based environment. The results showed that both environments were perceived as restorative and significantly reduced stress. To infer how the existence of a task modulated the results, in the second study, with 20 participants split into two groups, participants were exposed to the same environments, this time without a task. The results showed that the condition was significantly more restorative for the fractal-based environment when no task was performed. To conclude, fractal-based abstract environments show potential to be used for restoration purposes, but the extent to which having a task influences restorativeness needs further research.