Ubiquity of VR: Towards Investigating Ways of Interrupting VR Users to Obtain Their Attention in Public Spaces

Abstract

The portability of mobile virtual reality (VR) head-mounted displays (HMDs) allows users to immerse themselves in a virtual environment wherever they want at any physical place. While mobile VR has the potential to become ubiquitous as smartphones, it is still rarely used. Social acceptability is an important factor determining the usage of mobile technology. Previous work suggests that VR HMDs are considered not socially acceptable during social interaction. However, it is still unknown why the acceptance of mobile VR is reduced when being surrounded by other people. Therefore, we conducted two studies to investigate if and how interruptions by bystanders while wearing a mobile VR HMD contribute to reduced social acceptability. In the first study, we performed an observation in natural environments to find out how people interrupt VR users. In the second study, we used the same set of scenarios in an online survey to gather the opinions of a larger user group. Our results reveal still high skepticism towards VR use in public spaces, which can be mitigated partly by VR experience.