Reflexive VR Storytelling Design Beyond Immersion: Facilitating Self-Reflection on Death and Loneliness

Bahng, Sojung; Kelly, Ryan; McCormack, Jon

doi:10.1145/3313831.3376582

Cited by 20 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 39 publications

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“…After our initial research and planning stage, we began thinking about how to create an initial VR prototype. As others have previously noted (Bahng et al, 2020), designing VR applications is a complex activity, and there are few generalisable frameworks to inform the VR design process.…”

Section: Shaci Design Frameworkmentioning

confidence: 99%

Design Considerations for Supporting Mindfulness in Virtual Reality

Kelly

Seabrook

Foley

et al. 2022

Front. Virtual Real.

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Mindfulness practice involves bringing one’s attention to the present moment and noticing events as they unfold with a non-judgmental attitude of acceptance. Although mindfulness has been shown to reduce stress and improve mental health, it can be challenging to learn mindfulness techniques. Recent years have seen an interest in using virtual reality (VR) to help people learn mindfulness by immersing users in virtual settings that support an external focus of attention and reduce everyday environmental distraction. However, the literature currently lacks an understanding of how VR should be designed to support mindfulness. In this paper we describe the iterative design and evaluation of Place, a VR app that supports mindfulness practice by situating the user in a virtual forest environment. We present findings from our design process in which prospective users trialled Place and provided feedback on the design in focus groups. Our findings draw attention to factors that influenced the user experience and acceptance of VR for mindfulness, and we describe how the design was altered to address these factors. We end by discussing key design choices that designers should consider when creating VR for mindfulness. Our contributions include insight into the importance of following an iterative design process when creating a VR mindfulness app, and a framework that can be used to inform the design of future VR apps for mindfulness practice.

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Section: Shaci Design Frameworkmentioning

confidence: 99%

Design Considerations for Supporting Mindfulness in Virtual Reality

Kelly

Seabrook

Foley

et al. 2022

Front. Virtual Real.

Self Cite

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“…In the context of breastfeeding, previous work [30,72] has highlighted the potential of immersive interactive systems such as games or XR systems as a means of communicating the lived experience to parents-to-be. Here, the latest generation of VR systems in particular offers an opportunity to fully immerse users in experiences that are otherwise hard to access at a high level of fidelity, and it has previously been used to simulate sensitive situations, for example, witnessing acts of racial discrimination [19], confrontational customer behaviour [23], or prompting reflection on death and isolation [6]. In our work, we leverage this potential to provide parents-to-be with a first-person experience of earlystage breastfeeding in different settings, directly transposing users into different scenarios that reflect challenges associated with the lived experience of breastfeeding.…”

Section: Technology To Support Breastfeedingmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The youngest child was 15 months old (SD=9.45), and the breastfeeding duration of the youngest child was up to 1 month (1), up to 3 months (2), up to 6 months (2), up to 9 months (1) and up to one year or longer (10). Participants resided in Western Europe, but grew up in Western Europe (6), Eastern Europe (5), Southern Europe (4), South Asia (1), Southeast Asia (1), East Asia (1), South America (1).…”

Section: Participants and Proceduresmentioning

confidence: 99%

Virtual Feed: Design and Evaluation of a Virtual Reality Simulation Addressing the Lived Experience of Breastfeeding

Tang

Gerling

Geurts

2022

CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems

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Breastfeeding can be challenging, but it is difficult for antenatal education to convey issues associated with the lived experience of breastfeeding. In our work, we explore the potential of interactive simulations to support antenatal education, and present Virtual Feed, a Virtual Reality breastfeeding simulation for parents-to-be developed following a three-step process. (1) We created an experience prototype that features basic VR scenarios and a tangible baby, (2) we engaged in design sessions with 19 parents and parents-tobe to derive design implications to further refine the simulation, and (3) we evaluated the system through case studies to examine the perspectives of parents and parents-to-be on the simulation. Our results show that the simulation successfully engaged users and sparked curiosity, while also encouraging reflection about the challenges of breastfeeding. On this basis, we discuss challenges for the design of simulations with the purpose of supplementing antenatal education. CCS CONCEPTS• Human-centered computing → Human computer interaction (HCI); Virtual reality.

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“…Claims that VR could be "the next big thing for mental health" (Martin, 2019) emerged before COVID-19 (Srivastava et al, 2014). Previous work shows VR can help individuals form meaningful social bonds with distant others (Tarr et al, 2018;Wiederhold, 2018), cope with loneliness (Bahng et al, 2020), and improve mood (Browning et al, 2020). Moreover, VR applications designed for vulnerable populations to engage in social activities (e.g., singing) can contribute to mental well-being via heightened connectedness and enjoyment (Tamplin et al, 2020).…”

Section: Virtual Reality's Social Potentialmentioning

confidence: 99%

Virtually Real, But Not Quite There: Social and Economic Barriers to Meeting Virtual Reality’s True Potential for Mental Health

Pimentel

Foxman

Davis

et al. 2021

Front. Virtual Real.

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Strategies to mitigate the spread of COVID-19, namely quarantine and social distancing protocols, have exposed a troubling paradox: mandated isolation meant to preserve well-being has inadvertently contributed to its decline. Prolonged isolation has been associated with widespread loneliness and diminished mental health, with effects compounded by limited face-to-face access to clinical and social support systems. While remote communication technologies (e.g., video chat) can connect individuals with healthcare providers and social networks, remote technologies might have limited effectiveness in clinical and social contexts. In this review, we articulate the promise of Virtual Reality as a conduit to clinical resources and social connection. Furthermore, we outline various social and economic factors limiting the virtual reality industry’s ability to maximize its potential to address mental health issues brought upon by the pandemic. These barriers are delineated across five dimensions: sociocultural, content, affordability, supply chain, and equitable design. After examining potential short- and long-term solutions to these hurdles, we outline potential avenues for applied and theoretical research seeking to validate these solutions. Through this evaluation we seek to (a) emphasize virtual reality’s capacity to improve mental health by connecting communities to clinical and social support systems, (b) identify socioeconomic barriers preventing users from accessing these systems through virtual reality, and (c) discuss solutions that ensure these systems can be equitably accessed via changes to existing and future virtual reality infrastructures.

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Reflexive VR Storytelling Design Beyond Immersion: Facilitating Self-Reflection on Death and Loneliness

Cited by 20 publications

References 39 publications

Design Considerations for Supporting Mindfulness in Virtual Reality

Design Considerations for Supporting Mindfulness in Virtual Reality

Virtual Feed: Design and Evaluation of a Virtual Reality Simulation Addressing the Lived Experience of Breastfeeding

Virtually Real, But Not Quite There: Social and Economic Barriers to Meeting Virtual Reality’s True Potential for Mental Health

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