Development and Preliminary Validation of the Presence in Extended Reality for Sport and Exercise (PERSE)

The rapid expansion of extended reality (XR) technologies in sport has created a need for validated tools to assess individuals’ subjective sense of presence. In XR sport contexts, presence can be conceptualized as a two-dimensional construct reflecting (1) the extent to which athletes allocate attentional resources to the virtual environment, and (2) the perception of the environment as a plausible re-creation of training, competition, or performance settings that enables credible movements and interactions. Although numerous presence questionnaires exist (e.g., Witmer & Singer, 1998), no validated instrument is specifically tailored to sport and exercise contexts. Existing measures are largely ocular-centric (i.e., focused on what users see) and often fail to account for the representative, movement-based, interactive, competitive, and physically demanding nature of XR sport experiences. Thus, this study aims to fill this gap by developing and validating the Presence in Extended Reality for Sport and Exercise (PERSE) questionnaire. Initial items were generated using a deductive, theory-driven approach informed by the literature and existing validated measures. The questionnaire was structured around two dimensions: attentional allocation and perceived realism, with the latter comprising five factors—Motor Realism, Environmentally Relevant Realism, Emotional Realism, Interactive Realism, and Aesthetic Realism. Development proceeded in two phases. Phase 1 involved an expert panel of six members (two academic experts in XR sport and exercise, two industry experts involved in XR development and application, and two recreational table-tennis players with XR experience) who evaluated item clarity and relevance, resulting in refinements prior to empirical testing. In Phase 2, 139 participants completed the 69-item PERSE questionnaire following a 20-minute immersive virtual table-tennis session. Exploratory factor analysis was conducted using maximum likelihood extraction with oblimin rotation. Sampling adequacy and factorability were assessed using the Kaiser–Meyer–Olkin (KMO) measure and Bartlett’s test of sphericity. The results showed strong sampling adequacy (KMO = .844; Bartlett’s test p < .001). Exploratory factor analysis supported a 37-item, five-factor solution with acceptable model fit (RMSEA = .05; RMSR = .06). These preliminary findings provide initial evidence for the PERSE questionnaire as a robust measure of presence in XR sport and exercise contexts. The questionnaire offers a valuable tool for researchers and practitioners seeking to evaluate and optimize XR applications for sport training, performance enhancement, and exercise. A larger follow-up study (≈300 participants) is planned to further assess reliability and confirm the factor structure.