Beyond the Screen: A Meta-Analysis of How Tracking Levels, Age, and Issue Relevance Shape the Effectiveness of Immersive Media in Health Communication

As the use of immersive media in health interventions expands, research indicates that it outperforms traditional flat screens by enhancing spatial presence and persuasive outcomes. This meta-analysis integrates findings from 28 experimental studies to investigate how immersive media affects spatial presence and to assess whether these effects differ according to tracking levels (e.g. 3DoF vs. 6DoF) and audience characteristics such as age and issue involvement. Additionally, the study explores whether the persuasive impact of immersive media on health can be explained by its influence on spatial presence. The results demonstrate that immersive media markedly increases spatial presence and overall health persuasion, although its impact on persuasion appears to be confined to attitudinal changes. Moreover, the level of tracking did not produce varying effects on spatial presence or health persuasion. Notably, findings indicated that immersive media enhance spatial presence more effectively among older adults, with no significant differences observed between individuals with high versus low issue relevance. Overall, the study offers a nuanced understanding of immersive media’s role in health contexts and provides practical recommendations for health practitioners, particularly regarding immersive media’s capacity to impact attitudinal effects.