Fearing Disengagement from the Real World

Abstract

With the adoption of mobile head mounted displays (HMDs) amongst non-experts outside of lab settings, it becomes increasingly important to understand what factors influence a holistic mobile virtual reality (MVR) user experience. We present the results of a field study (N=34), in which we used three methods - a drawing task, a storytelling exercise, and the technology acceptance questionnaire (TAM) - to explore factors, beyond technical capability, that influence the user experience of HMDs. Our analysis (1) highlights factors that designers and researchers can adopt to create and evaluate socially acceptable MVR systems for non-expert users outside a lab context, and (2) puts these factors in context with existing research from industry and academia.