Virtual Silcton and Beyond: A Virtual Environment Paradigm Framework for Spatial Navigation Research
Abstract
Over ten years ago, we published the first data collected with Virtual Silcton, a desktop virtual environment that enabled objective measurement of navigation behavior in the lab. Virtual Silcton has since been used in dozens of studies by multiple lab groups, across a wide range of participants. While measuring navigation behavior with virtual environments has never been easier, what have we been measuring, exactly? In this focused review, we outline the history and context of navigation research that led to the development of Virtual Silcton, then propose a framework for Virtual Environment Paradigms – the environment, learning procedure, and tasks which are often grouped into one package – of which Virtual Silcton is a prominent example. In addition to reviewing the ways that Virtual Silcton has been used and key findings from that paradigm, our aim is helping researchers determine what type of assessment best suits their purpose. We conclude by discussing challenges to measuring navigation behavior virtually in the future, as well as discovering opportunities for translation.
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BibTeX
@misc{weisberg2026virtual,
title = {{Virtual Silcton and Beyond: A Virtual Environment Paradigm Framework for Spatial Navigation Research}},
author = {Steven Weisberg and Victor Schinazi},
howpublished = {PsyArXiv},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.31234/osf.io/nucg3_v1},
url = {https://osf.io/preprints/psyarxiv/nucg3_v1/},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - Virtual Silcton and Beyond: A Virtual Environment Paradigm Framework for Spatial Navigation Research
AU - Steven Weisberg
AU - Victor Schinazi
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/19
PB - PsyArXiv
DO - 10.31234/osf.io/nucg3_v1
UR - https://osf.io/preprints/psyarxiv/nucg3_v1/
AB - Over ten years ago, we published the first data collected with Virtual Silcton, a desktop virtual environment that enabled objective measurement of navigation behavior in the lab. Virtual Silcton has since been used in dozens of studies by multiple lab groups, across a wide range of participants. While measuring navigation behavior with virtual environments has never been easier, what have we been measuring, exactly? In this focused review, we outline the history and context of navigation research that led to the development of Virtual Silcton, then propose a framework for Virtual Environment Paradigms – the environment, learning procedure, and tasks which are often grouped into one package – of which Virtual Silcton is a prominent example. In addition to reviewing the ways that Virtual Silcton has been used and key findings from that paradigm, our aim is helping researchers determine what type of assessment best suits their purpose. We conclude by discussing challenges to measuring navigation behavior virtually in the future, as well as discovering opportunities for translation.
ER -