[ Abstract ]

The integration of Extended Reality (XR) into built environments presents opportunities for indoor spatial experience, yet evaluation methods fail to capture the unique characteristics when physical and virtual elements coexist. Current approaches—from usability-focused instruments to architecture-oriented methods—overlook the verbal-behavioral discrepancy where users report positive experiences while exhibiting avoidance behaviors. To address this gap, we present SEEMEE (Spatial Experience Evaluation Method for Extended Environments), a framework that evaluates XR spatial experience through behavioral congruence measurement—the degree to which user movements in XR environments match their natural behaviors in equivalent physical spaces. SEEMEE employs a three-stage guideline capturing behavioral responses to spatial stimuli. Target Movement Selection establishes baselines by documenting Personal Pattern Baseline (individual movement characteristics) and Spatial Pattern Baseline (navigation trajectories within environmental constraints). Affection Panoply Sampling captures experiential responses at multiple temporal scales: fleeting affection within 3-second windows and savoring affection at 5-minute, 30-minute, and 24-hour intervals. Response Difference Modulation interprets physical-virtual behavioral differences through Temporal Distillation Protocol (tracking adaptation patterns within participants) and Uncertainty Distillation Protocol (distinguishing system-level issues from individual preferences). We demonstrate practical application through an exemplary virtual window experiment using Apple Vision Pro. The findings demonstrate that SEEMEE effectively reveals temporal patterns of verbal-behavioral congruence. For example, positive self-reports paired with avoidance trajectories, or conversely naturalistic movement aligned with consistent self-reports, provide composite indicators of experience that conventional questionnaires miss. By capturing nuanced behavioral responses, proposed guidelines and detailed practices capture nuanced behavioral responses, providing new possibilities for evaluating genuine spatial experience.

Keywords: Extended Reality, Spatial Experience, Qualitative Assessment, Case Study, Human-Space Interaction.