Are you afraid? Neurophysiological responses to multidimensional fear in an interactive semi-immersive environment

Abstract

Introduction Objective fear recognition is crucial for clinical evaluation and understanding emotional processing. This study uses a multi-modal biophysical approach (EEG, HRV, EDA) within an interactive, semi-immersive environment to investigate coordinated brain-body responses across multidimensional fear scenarios. Methods Ten participants experienced four fear-related scenes mapped to Kantian cognitive dimensions (Embodied, Conceptual, Discursive, Integrative) featuring real-time adaptive audiovisuals. EEG, HRV, and EDA metrics were concurrently recorded and normalized to a resting baseline to evaluate shared signatures, scene-specific modulations, and cross-modal correlations. Results Neural and autonomic fear markers included frontal and parietal activation, elevated EEG-derived indices (Fatigue, Excitement, Engagement), and increased heart rate and skin conductance. Contextual modulation of fear was characterized by bottom-up and top-down processing during Embodied and Conceptual fear, respectively. Multi-modal clustering showed modality-specific organization overall, with a weak but significant global EEG-autonomic association (Mantel test), and one validated cross-modal link between HRV (LF/HF) and EDA (SCRP). Conclusion Fear manifested through both shared neurophysiological signatures and context-dependent cognitive-embodied variations. Combining immersive technology with multi-modal biophysical sensing presents an exploratory, ecologically-valid framework for emotion research that can inform future closed-loop, adaptive paradigms.