Virtual reality and electroencephalography in architectural design: A systematic review of empirical studies

What the study found

All reviewed studies reported environmental effects on some physiological, psychological or cognitive measures, but methods were too diverse for specific universal design rules.

Limitations

Small samples, inconsistent EEG analysis, demographic limits and scarcity of real-versus-VR validation.

Neurodesign interpretation

VR is best treated as a laboratory for spatial hypotheses, not proof that a completed building will create the same response.

Possible design implications

Use VR for controlled pre-construction testing, but validate high-stakes findings in physical settings.

Why it stays in the corpus

Retain as the dedicated EEG plus VR methods review.

Study design

Systematic review

Population

Humans across 19 included studies

Setting

VR architecture experiments

Field

Neuroarchitecture

Mechanism

EEG response in immersive environments

Spatial variable

Virtual architectural stimuli

Keywords

VR, EEG, architecture, systematic review