Portable sensing, in which lightweight mobile sensors are used to measure stimuli, events, and human behavior, is a new and disruptive data collection paradigm. It has several methodological advantages compared to traditional methods and is suitable for investigating the dynamism of increasingly mobile and urban societies. In this article, we discuss the motivations behind the use of portable sensing and reflect upon the advances, limitations, and future of the field. Although portable sensing is still in its infancy, we foresee that its utilization will grow in the coming years. For portable sensing to become a prevalent and legitimate methodological approach, it is essential to have conceptually strong study designs that are grounded in suitable ethical procedures and comply with data protection regulations.
Recent approaches in the research on walkable environments and wellbeing go beyond correlational analysis to consider the specific characteristics of individuals and their interaction with the immediate environment. Accordingly, a need has been accentuated for new human-centered methods to improve our understanding of the mechanisms underlying environmental effects on walking and consequently on wellbeing. Immersive virtual environments (IVEs) were suggested as a potential method that can advance this type of research as they offer a unique combination between controlled experimental environments that allow drawing causal conclusions and a high level of environmental realism that supports ecological validity. The current study pilot tested a walking simulator with additional sensor technologies, including biosensors, eye tracking and gait sensors. Results found IVEs to facilitate extremely high tempo-spatial-resolution measurement of physical walking parameters (e.g., speed, number of gaits) along with walking experience and wellbeing (e.g., electrodermal activity, heartrate). This level of resolution is useful in linking specific environmental stimuli to the psychophysiological and behavioral reactions, which cannot be obtained in real-world and self-report research designs. A set of guidelines for implementing IVE technology for research is suggested in order to standardize its use and allow new researchers to engage with this emerging field of research.
