Engaging the disgust system in virtual reality: First steps and recommendations in using virtual reality as an induction tool for the cognitive-affective toolbox

<p><strong>As an emotional system, disgust biases adaptive changes across behaviour, cognition, physiology, and subjective experience to protect the self from contamination. Traditional laboratory methods may fail to full activate this system, necessitating innovative induction methods that balance ecological validity and experimental control. This thesis assesses the early-stage viability of using multi-sensory virtual reality to induce and study the disgust system, asking: (1) Can the disgust system be engaged in a novel multi-sensory virtual reality (VR) environment?; and, if so, (2) Can this VR induction be used to investigate attentional and physiological correlates of disgust? A novel VR environment was designed featuring a contaminated bathroom. Two experiments were conducted exposing participants to the VR scenario: Experiment 1 (n = 12) for development and piloting, and Experiment 2 (n = 72) to evaluate both research questions empirically. Findings from Experiment 2 supported engagement of the disgust system, in line with the primary research question. Participants in the disgust condition reported significantly higher subjective disgust and displayed greater behavioural avoidance compared to controls, with large effect sizes. Informal observations across Experiment 1 and Experiment 2 further corroborated both specificity of disgust induction and complexity of responses evoked. Emergence of mixed states of amusement-disgust and fear-disgust were explored. Attentional and physiological correlates were then investigated. A flanker task was successfully integrated into the scene, and results suggested disgust did not impact selective attention. However, concerns with construct validity and participants’ reception to the task, as well as low-level visual confounds led to suggestions that innovative imbedded attentional measures may offer stronger alternatives for future work. Skin conductance level was significantly lower in disgust participants, however, varying possible contributing factors and measurement limitations were identified, complicating interpretation. No other physiological measures differed by disgust condition. The discussion highlights limitations and outlines actionable recommendations when developing VR affective inductions for cognitive research. These include emphasis on the importance of narrative coherence and self-relevance, 3D spatial integration and capture, high technical fidelity, and careful domain selection when crafting cognitive questions to answer with such a tool. Thus, while early-stage work, this thesis identifies potential in VR to elicit rich, diverse, and embodied disgust responses and offers insights for refining such VR tools for cognitive work and advancing the study of disgust.</strong></p>