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. 2020 Dec;62(8):1339-1348.
doi: 10.1177/0018720819876139. Epub 2019 Oct 7.

Knowing What's Coming: Unpredictable Motion Causes More Motion Sickness

Ouren X Kuiper, Jelte E Bos  1 , Eike A Schmidt  2 , Cyriel Diels  3 , Stefan Wolter  4
Affiliations

Knowing What's Coming: Unpredictable Motion Causes More Motion Sickness

Ouren X Kuiper et al. Hum Factors. 2020 Dec.

Abstract

Objective: This study explores the role of anticipation in motion sickness. We compared three conditions varying in motion predictability and assessed the effect of anticipation on subsequent illness ratings using a within-subjects design.

Background: Anticipation is thought to play a role in motion sickness by reducing the discrepancy between sensed and expected sensory information. However, both the exact role and potential magnitude of anticipation on motion sickness are unknown.

Method: Participants (N = 17) were exposed to three 15-min conditions consisting of repeated fore-aft motion on a sled on a 40-m rail (1) at constant intervals and consistent motion direction, (2) at constant intervals but varied motion direction, and (3) at varied intervals but consistent motion direction. Conditions were otherwise identical in motion intensity and displacement, as they were composed of the same repetitions of identical blocks of motion. Illness ratings were recorded at 1-min intervals using an 11-point motion sickness scale.

Results: Average illness ratings after exposure were significantly lower for the predictable condition, compared with both the directionally unpredictable condition and the temporally unpredictable condition.

Conclusion: Unpredictable motion is significantly more provocative compared with predictable motion. Findings suggest motion sickness results from a discrepancy between sensed and expected motion, rather than from unpreparedness to motion.

Application: This study underlines the importance of an individual's anticipation to motion in motion sickness. Furthermore, this knowledge could be used in domains such as that of autonomous vehicles to reduce carsickness.

Keywords: attentional processes; autonomous driving; motion sickness; multisensory integration.

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Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
The motion platform and track. The full track was 40 m; however, in the present study, we exclusively utilized displacements of ±9 m.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
The inside of the cabin with the car seat and 5-point safety harness. The cabin prevented visual and haptic (via airflow) information on the occurring motion.
Figure 3.
Figure 3.
The first 2 min of the three conditions, here shown as displacement over time. Over the 15-min duration, all conditions use the same amount of repetitions of the basic displacement. From top to bottom the conditions shown here are predictable (P), directionally unpredictable (dU), and temporally unpredictable (tU).
Figure 4.
Figure 4.
Average illness ratings over time for the predictable (P), the directionally unpredictable condition (dU), and the temporally unpredictable (tU) conditions. Gray bands depict standard error of the mean.
Figure 5.
Figure 5.
Regression line per condition using a square root function.
Figure 6.
Figure 6.
Boxplots showing the coefficients of the regression lines fitted for each condition and each participant. Asterisks indicate significance level (**p < .01, ***p < .001). Motion sickness increases at a higher rate for the unpredictable conditions as compared with the predictable condition.
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References

    1. Bles W., Bos J. E., de Graaf B., Groen E., Wertheim A. H. (1998). Motion sickness: Only one provocative conflict? Brain Research Bulletin, 47, 481–487. - PubMed
    1. Bos J. E., Bles W. (2002). Theoretical considerations on canal-otolith interaction and an observer model. Biological Cybernetics, 86, 191–207. - PubMed
    1. Bos J. E., Bles W., Groen E. L. (2008). A theory on visually induced motion sickness. Displays, 29, 47–57.
    1. Bos J. E., MacKinnon S. N., Patterson A. (2005). Motion sickness symptoms in a ship motion simulator: Effects of inside, outside, and no view. Aviation, Space, and Environmental Medicine, 76, 1111–1118. - PubMed
    1. Diels C., Bos J. E. (2016). Self-driving carsickness. Applied Ergonomics, 53, 374–382. - PubMed

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