In response to the pandemic, many countries have had multiple lockdowns punctuated by partial freedoms limiting physically being together. In 2020-21, during the COVID-19 pandemic parents were stressed and exhausted by the challenges of work, home schooling and barriers to typical childcare arrangements. Children were missing one another, their social lives and the variety of experiences that the world beyond the home brings. Immersive Virtual Reality (IVR) offers tried and tested ways to enable children to maintain beyond-household family activities and dynamics. However, it is not viewed as a solution. Instead, as demonstrated through a multiple method study involving a Rapid Evidence Assessment; workshops with 91 teenagers; interviews with 15 experts; a Delphi study with 21 experts; 402 parent questionnaires pre-pandemic; 232 parent questionnaires during the pandemic; and longitudinal interviews with 13 parents during the first UK lockdown in 2020, IVR is not viewed as having value in the home beyond gaming. Results highlight limited consideration of IVR as a way to enhance family life or the home, with a lack of evidence and direction from current research, innovation and policy. The paper empirically demonstrates that experts, teenagers and parents have limited expectations for VR. Further, with parental resistance to adoption and a lack of ideas or innovations in how Immersive Virtual Reality could be used, the likelihood of VR-headset adoption remains low as does its potential as a means of educating, entertaining and socially engaging children and teenagers.

No abstract

No abstract

This paper discusses a collaboration between creatives, artists, academics, cyber security professionals and companies to create artworks that increased awareness of cyber security. The aim was to offer creative perspectives and practices into how cyber security might be better understood through creating visualisations, experiences and narratives that could enable communication and insight. 4 cyber security businesses each provided a theme resulting in vibrant collaborations between the companies, 4 academics and 8 artists. 11 projects and 42 pieces of art were developed and exhibited in two exhibitions in the Northeast where over 100 people viewed the works. Evaluation indicated that the artworks had an impact, with people more aware of cyber security. This project has highlighted the opportunities created through collaborations among artists, academics and cyber security practitioners in facilitating the understanding of complex technical issues.

Cyber Eyes Wide Open exhibited artworks to provide audiences with new ways to consider cybersecurity as part of #Cyberfest 2021, the North East's cybersecurity festival. In this interaction gallery exhibit, works developed by collaborative teams of artists, companies and academics will be displayed. The works are in a variety of media, offering varying levels of interaction aiming to enhance understanding of the complexity and pervasiveness of Cybersecurity. The research agenda being explored relates to levels of collaborative innovation in interdisciplinary practice with exploratory, transformative and innovative collaboration demonstrated through the artworks.