Social interactions are often shaped by the space we prefer to keep between ourselves and others, i.e. interpersonal distance. Being too distant from or too close to a stranger can often be perceived as odd, and lead to atypical social interactions.
In the beginning of 2020, the virus COVID-19 has started to spread in many Countries, infecting hundreds of thousands of people and dramatically causing many deaths. Some Countries decided to impose restrictions to slow down the spreading and contain the infections: for example, closing schools and universities, suggesting physical- distancing and imposing the lockdown of entire Countries.
Currently many Countries, including Italy, are easing some of the restrictions. However, physical distancing of at least one meter is still considered as an important safety measure to prevent the mass spread of the virus.
In this context, it is highly plausible that the fear of being infected, the physical distancing along with individual priorities, might have an influence on the distance we keep with others.
During the lockdown phase (April 2020), a self-report study (Lisi et al., in preparation) found that the interpersonal distance regulation is affected by the protective devices and the provided information of COVID-19 diagnosis.
Here we devised an immersive virtual reality (IVR) task to investigate more directly the effect of these factors and, importantly, the group categorization on the distance kept between participants virtual body and an avatar situated in front of them.
By capitalizing on IVR, we will investigate the effect of individual and social factors on the regulation of interpersonal distance in a ecological, yet high controlled environment. Specifically, we will be able to disentangle whether wearing protective devices can enhance the feeling safety and weaken the physical distancing.
Importantly, we will explore the relationship between group categorization and the feeling of unsafety, which could have dramatic consequences in real life.
Through psychophysiological recordings we will provide a objective indices of arousal regulation during spatial interactions following the COVID-19 pandemic.
This project could pave the way to the development of VR protocols dedicated to the regulation of interpersonal distance in public settings.