This study examined the relative influence of environmental variables (corridor width and brightness) and signage (directional and exit signs), when presented in competition, on participants' route-choices in two situational variables (everyday vs. emergency), during indoor wayfinding in virtual environments. A virtual reality-based methodology was used. Thus, participants attempted to find a room (everyday situation) in a virtual hotel, followed by a fire-related emergency egress (emergency situation). Different behaviours were observed. In the everyday situation, for no-signs condition, participants choose mostly the wider and brighter corridors, suggesting a heavy reliance on the environmental affordances. Conversely, for signs condition, participants mostly complied with signage, suggesting a greater reliance on the signs rather than on the environmental cues. During emergency, without signage, reliance on environmental affordances seems to be affected by the intersection type. In the sign condition, the reliance on environmental affordances that started strong decreases along the egress route.

Several research studies have shown that training using simulations is a good strategy to promote the performance of students and work teams [1]. The effectiveness of the training, in terms of transfer, using simulations, has been proved for pilots (flight simulators) and surgeons (virtual reality systems) [2]. These simulations, based in expensive technology solutions, are very difficult to be implemented in companies, for training workers for emergency fire evacuation. In everyday situations, particularly in the emergency associated with rapid evacuation of people in buildings, is required by law, the development of fire drills. The main objective of these methods is to train the workers to peacefully follow a previously taught routine. However, in a real emergency, workers can be under a high stress situation and may not follow the previously trained behavior. This article will reflect on emergency evacuation in buildings and how the effectiveness of the training process can be increased. Thus, a theoretical approach of emergency evacuation will be presented and a discussion of VR as the usage for training in these situations