Aw … The Museum is so “Dark”: The Effect of Thermal Stimuli for Virtual Reality Experience and Emotion

Virtual Reality (VR) is an emerging technology that can enhance tourists' experiences through digital multisensory, such as human senses and thermal stimuli. Prior studies are missing to understand the impact of thermal stimuli on the VR experience. Therefore, this study tries to fill the research gap in a dark tourism context with three conditions: cold, warm, and no thermal stimuli. Using a randomized lab experiment with 15 participants, this study found that cold thermal stimuli trigger less arousal and valence than warm and neutral conditions. Moreover, we also reported users' emotions by capturing psychophysiological data (electrodermal activity and heart rate) to increase the robustness of the study. We extend this study by interviewing participants to understand cognitive and affective experiences that lead to eudemonic well-being as the outcome of this VR experience.