PuppetVR: Towards Supporting Pretend Play through VR Storytelling for Neurodivergent Children

Abstract

Pretend play, including enacting imaginary scenarios and constructing narratives, is crucial for children's development. Neurodivergent children, particularly those with autism, often face challenges engaging in pretend play. To explore how immersive technologies might support this, we developed PuppetVR: a Virtual Reality (VR)-based digital storytelling tool that captures users' body movements and voice, enabling them to record and replay role-play scenarios. Here, we present a preliminary evaluation of PuppetVR with 21 adult participants, conducted both in the lab and remotely. Our results showed that PuppetVR can support users to practice pretend play and further demonstrated that it can be used as a tool for creative expression. We also found that users favoured non-verbal body movement and enjoyed using the system. We contribute insights and identify open challenges for future work that aims to support neurodivergent children's creative expression in VR, both in individual and collaborative settings.