Effects of embodying virtual avatars are routinely validated experimentally by comparing synchronous and asynchronous movements between virtual and real bodies. This experimental paradigm, however, lacks justification, validation, and standardization. Asynchrony is currently implemented in numerous ways, such as through delayed, dislocated, or prerecorded movements, and these may impact embodiment and user experience distinctively. An online study (N = 202) revealed that variations of asynchrony cause disparate responses to embodiment and user experience, with prerecorded movements distorting embodiment the most. A think-aloud study (N = 16) revealed that asynchronous conditions lead to peculiar and oftentimes negative experiences. Furthermore, asynchronous conditions in some cases maintain, rather than break the body ownership illusion, as participants imitate the virtual body. Our results show that asynchrony in experiments on embodiment entails profound validity issues and should therefore be used with caution.
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3706598.3713506
Embodiment is an everyday experience that typically goes unnoticed. While we often take it for granted, with the adoption of virtual reality (VR) technology, embodiment in virtual bodies and worlds has become an important consideration for designers of immersive experiences. To date, the VR design community has primarily considered embodiment in terms of body ownership over a synchronized visual representation. In this paper, we construct an interactional framework of virtual embodiment, beginning by revisiting what it really means to be “embodied.” Our framework reconnects embodiment and presence in virtual environments founded in Dourish's concept of embodied interaction and Heidegger's Dasein or “being-in-the-world.” We discuss how embodiment, fundamentally rooted in past and present interactions, changes our understanding of body ownership and its extension into VR. Integrating theories from VR research, philosophy, HCI, and psychology we uncover the complex interplay of interaction, environment, and touch in shaping embodied experiences. We present a novel framework for understanding embodiment in VR rooted in interaction, enabling designers to create more immersive and meaningful virtual worlds.
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3706598.3713586
Immersive technologies are capable of transporting people to distant or inaccessible environments that they might not otherwise visit. Practitioners and researchers alike are discovering new ways to replicate and enhance existing tourism experiences using virtual reality, yet few controlled experiments have studied how users perceive virtual tours of real-world locations. In this paper we present an initial exploration of a new system for virtual tourism, measuring the effects of real-time experiences and storytelling on presence, place attachment, and user memories of the destination. Our results suggest that narrative plays an important role in inducing presence within and attachment to the destination, while livestreaming can further increase place attachment while providing flexible, tailored experiences. We discuss the design and evaluation of our system, including feedback from our tourism partners, and provide insights into current limitations and further opportunities for virtual tourism.
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3706598.3714182
Remapping techniques in VR such as repositioning, redirection, and resizing have been extensively studied. Still, interaction designers rarely have the opportunity to use them due to high technical and knowledge barriers. In the paper, we extract common features of 24 existing remapping techniques and develop a high-fidelity immersive authoring tool, namely RemapVR, for rapidly building and experiencing prototypes of remapped space properties in VR that are unperceivable or acceptable to users. RemapVR provides designers with a series of functions for editing remappings and visualizing spatial property changes, mapping relationships between real and virtual worlds, sensory conflicts, etc. Designers can quickly build existing remappings via templates, and author new remappings by interactively recording spatial relations between input trajectory in real world and output trajectory in virtual world. User studies showed that the designs of RemapVR can effectively improve designers' authoring experience and efficiency, and support designers to author remapping prototypes that meet scene requirements and provide good user experience.
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3706598.3714201
3D-printed models are increasingly used to provide people who are blind or have low vision (BLV) with access to maps, educational materials, and museum exhibits. Recent research has explored interactive 3D-printed models (I3Ms) that integrate touch gestures, conversational dialogue, and haptic vibratory feedback to create more engaging interfaces. Prior research with sighted people has found that imbuing machines with human-like behaviours, i.e., embodying them, can make them appear more lifelike, increasing social perception and presence. Such embodiment can increase engagement and trust. This work presents the first exploration into the design of embodied I3Ms and their impact on BLV engagement and trust. In a controlled study with 12 BLV participants, we found that I3Ms using specific embodiment design factors, such as haptic vibratory and embodied personified voices, led to an increased sense of liveliness and embodiment, as well as engagement, but had mixed impact on trust.
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3706598.3713158
In this systematic review, we analyze the literature on psychological ownership of virtual objects and environments according to the PRISMA statement. Psychological ownership describes the feelings of possession towards an object which are independent of legal possession. The construct stems from organizational management literature, but is gaining in importance in Human-Computer-Interaction as users invest billions to own virtual objects. The analysis of 21 research papers reveals how and why ownership emerges and presents the dimensions and consequences of such feelings. In addition, we relate these variables to the classic psychological ownership motives of self-efficacy, self-identity, and belonging, as well as the routes of control, identity transfer, and intimate knowledge. We outline why designers should pay attention to the phenomenon and how it can be utilized in different contexts. Finally, the paper concludes by outlining why and what research will be needed in the future.
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3706598.3713750
As vehicles become more advanced, in-car agents must manage increasingly complex interactions, heightening the need for effective information delivery. This paper investigates how different embodiments of in-car agents affect the delivery of various information types. We developed the ‘Drop-lit’ prototype to explore three embodiment features: physicality, characterization, and movement. In a user study with 20 participants, we compared three representative agent designs: abstraction, digital character, and mixed-media, across six categories of in-car information. Additionally, a co-design session allowed participants to self-customize and combine embodiment features for six specific driving scenarios. Results indicated that mixed-media agents were most effective for urgent warnings, digital characters for recommendations, and abstracted agents for simple reference information. The study also revealed how embodiment influenced experiential factors such as attention-grabbing, urgency, friendliness, trustworthiness, and playfulness, offering insights for optimizing agent design to enhance user engagement and information delivery in automotive contexts.
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3706598.3713255