Epilogue 6 121 presence based on a numerical scale, it should be assessed based on how physiological and behavioral responses correspond across a real-world task and a simulated version of that task. Based on this strategy, VR training may be sufficiently realistic or representative if police officers respond identically to the simulated and real-life task. Second, many modern VR systems allow for the tracking of gaze behavior. In accordance with the integrated model of perceptual-motor performance and anxiety (Nieuwenhuys & Oudejans, 2012, 2017) it has been shown that anxiety affects attention, including visual attention (Nieuwenhuys & Oudejans, 2010, 2011). Future research should therefore utilize gaze tracking with VR to systematically investigate whether visual attention is affected when engaging in stressful simulated environments. Moreover, gaze tracking in VR could be utilized to examine the effects of VR training on maintaining or improving (task-relevant) attention. Third, the application of and interaction with VR is limited to audiovisual stimuli (Melo et al., 2020). As specified in Chapter 4, the limited multi-sensory fidelity of VR may constrain the level of representativeness that VR elicits. Particularly in police work where tasks that include tactile stimuli (such as the use of handcuffs) and olfactory stimuli (such as the smell of alcohol from a suspects’ breath) provide important cues for action possibilities, multi-sensory experiences in VR should be investigated more specifically. Evidence-based results on the influence of multisensory experiences in VR — particularly on a behavioral level — may further inform how VR training can be designed, implemented, and applied to improve performance of police officers (Kleygrewe, Hutter, & Oudejans, 2023; Zechner et al., 2023). Finally, practice would benefit from research investigating the efficacy of VR for specific learning objectives such as tactical movement, communication, situational awareness, or decision-making and acting. Currently, research has mostly focused on the broader context of suitable training areas to which VR could be applied (e.g., for disaster management, see Sharma et al., 2014; Yu et al., 2022). Additional research is needed to investigate how VR can be used to develop and foster specific learning objectives. Determining the efficacy of VR training to foster skill development and learning allows police agencies to implement VR more specifically into existing training curricula.
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