Exploring the use of immersive virtual reality to assess occupants’ productivity and comfort in workplaces: An experimental study on the role of walls colour

[Display omitted] •Validation of virtual reality for comfort and productivity assessments.•Experimental tests in a real and an immersive virtual office room.•23 subjects tested under 3 walls colour and 2 temperature levels.•No statistically significant results variation among real and virtual environments.•No statistically significant colour’s effect on comfort perception and productivity. Virtual Reality application in holistic investigations for energy and cost-saving building design, aimed at humans’ well-being and performance, is still emerging and needs validation. In this study, tests in real and virtual scenarios of an office room were performed, investigating the impact of three walls colours (red, white, blue) and two indoor air temperatures (17–22 °C) on 23 participants’ work productivity (through a proofreading task) and thermal and visual sensations (through surveys). The first goal was the comparison of the results obtained in the real and virtual settings; the second one the assessment of the effect of walls’ colour and temperature levels on the mentioned variables in each environment. Statistical analyses were then performed “between groups” (Wilcoxon and t-tests, among datasets of the two environments) and “within groups” (ANOVA and Scheirer test, within each environment). The study revealed no statistically significant variations in productivity and sensation votes, thus supporting the suitability of VR as a proper research technology in this domain. The study also demonstrated no statistically significant effects of colour and temperature on productivity and comfort results within the tested settings. Future investigations should involve a wider range of temperatures and colours and address a wider subjects’ sample.