Does Tool Use in Virtual Reality Change the Visual Perception of Extrapersonal and Peripersonal Space?

People often try to reach out and interact with space in VR when they experience it for the first time. In the real world the space where people are able to physically manipulate objects is referred to as peripersonal space whereas extrapersonal space is beyond our arms reach. Gamberini, Carlesso, Seraglia, and Craighero (2013) examined how people perform a line bisection task in VR and suggested that a tools-action-consequence affects how people perceive space. Researchers reported that when a tool was perceived as a “cutter” and a to-be-bisected line broke, the tool brought extrapersonal space into peripersonal space due to its line breaking action. Two experiments are reported in which the tool by distance interaction reported by Gamberini et al. was examined. In contrast to Gamberini et al., it is concluded that line length and distance have more of an effect on how people perceive space than the tool type.