The key objective of the research was to empirically examine the validity of immersive multisensory VR (food) environments for modeling real-world food cue responses [FCR]. We conducted a lab-based "proof-of-principle" study to systematically compare individuals’ FCRs (i.e., self-reported craving and salivation levels) between a unisensory (vision only) VR environment, multisensory (vision + olfaction) VR environment, and a comparable real-life setting. Furthermore, we investigated possible mechanisms (i.e., presence) underlying FCR-enhancing effects of a multisensory VR environment.

Research Questions:

To what extent do individuals’ psychological (i.e., subjective craving) and physiological (i.e., salivary volume) responses to food cues (versus non-food cues) differ between a unisensory (vision only) VR environment versus a multisensory (vision + olfaction) VR environment versus a comparable real-life setting? What mechanisms underlie (indirect) FCR-enhancing effects of the multisensory VR environment?

This lab-based study had a within-subjects cue exposure paradigm with a 2 (Stimuli Type: Non-food vs Food) by 3 (Exposure Mode: Unisensory VR vs Multisensory VR vs Real-life) factorial design. In total, there were 6 experimental conditions. Participants attended one screening session (~10 minutes) and one lab-based test session (~45 minutes) at the university, consisting of the six experimental conditions in a (pseudo)randomized order. During the test session, participants performed a cue exposure task in both virtual and real-life conditions, and answered a series of questionnaires.

Data files:

SMELLETECHNOLOGY_Dataset_FINAL– cleaned dataset for all participants in all experimental conditions CodingScheme_AdditionalExplanation_Dataset – additional explanation for some variable labels and values in the final dataset The following are raw data files (Excel/csv) from the Qualtrics questionnaires during lab test sessions, grouped per randomization order: RAOrder_1_QualtricsSurvey RAOrder_2_QualtricsSurvey RAOrder_3_QualtricsSurvey RAOrder_4_QualtricsSurvey RAOrder_5_QualtricsSurvey RAOrder_6_QualtricsSurvey The following are raw data files (Excel/csv) from the screening session Screening_QualtricsFile SniffinSticks_AnswerExcelSheet

Supplemental material

InformedConsent: Informed consent form (in English) TestSession_Questionnaires: All study questionnaires used (during the lab test session)

Structure data package Data files

Data files folder > Cleaned datasets > SMELLETECHNOLOGY_Dataset_FINAL CodingScheme_AdditionalExplanation_Dataset Data files folder > Raw Qualtrics data files > Lab test session > RAOrder_1_QualtricsSurvey RAOrder_2_QualtricsSurvey RAOrder_3_QualtricsSurvey RAOrder_4_QualtricsSurvey RAOrder_5_QualtricsSurvey RAOrder_6_QualtricsSurvey Data files folder > Raw Qualtrics data files > Screening session > Screening_QualtricsFile SniffinSticks_AnswerExcelSheet

Supplementary Materials

Supplemental Materials folder > InformedConsent TestSession_Questionnaires

Ethical clearance: This study was approved by the Ethical Review Board of the Tilburg School of Humanities and Digital Sciences (Tilburg University; file number: REDC 2023.62). Preregistration: The hypotheses, study design, and analysis plan were preregistered (https://osf.io/6hjax) Production date: Begin date: 15-01-2024 to End date: 31-03-2024 Method: Lab-based experiment, consisting of a cue exposure task and series of questionnaires (Qualtrics) Universe 70 healthy university students (59% female; MAge = 20.71 years) from diverse educational tracks took part in the research. All participants were fluent English speakers and screened on certain eligibility criteria. See pre-registration for specific inclusion and exclusion criteria. Country / Nation: The Netherlands.

The spreadsheet files (one-sheet xlsx files) are also present in their preferred file format csv. Preferred formats are file formats of which DANS – based on international agreements – is confident that they will offer the best long-term guarantees in terms of usability, accessibility and sustainability. For more information on preferred file formats, see https://dans.knaw.nl/en/file-formats/.

Data cannot be used for commercial purposes (see license).