Exploring Evidence of Presence in Gamified Virtual Reality Training to Empower Construction Professionals

Abstract

The construction sector is inherently complex, dynamic, and hazardous, ranking among the industries with the highest rates of occupational accidents. Even experienced professionals, despite prior training, often struggle to effectively recognize and manage risks. The construction industry is one of the sectors that employs the most people in the country, and has a high rate of accidents and deaths, with working at heights being one of the main causes of this. The lack of training and awareness among workers so that they can recognize risk situations is one of the factors that appear to cause this situation. To obtain positive rates regarding the minimization of accidents, responsibilities must be met, through Regulatory Standards NR18 and NR35. This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of virtual reality training for work at heights by analyzing users’ sense of presence through both subjective and physiological measures. The study presents findings from a VR simulation conducted in a laboratory setting with 14 participants, all with no prior experience in such activities. Data was collected during and after the experiment to assess signs of presence. The results indicate that the practical application of VR generates a strong sense of presence among participants, suggesting that virtual reality may be a promising solution for training professionals in high-risk construction tasks. The contribution of this study is, in addition to advancing research on the practical use of virtual reality for training construction professionals, to prove the effectiveness of VR for training the target audience without risk to life.