An Equitable Experience? How HCI Research Conceptualizes Accessibility of Virtual Reality in the Context of Disability

Creating accessible Virtual Reality (VR) is an ongoing concern in the Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) research community. However, there is little reflection on how accessibility should be conceptualized in the context of an experiential technology. We address this gap in our work: We first explore how accessibility is currently defined, highlighting a growing recognition of the importance of equitable and enriching experiences. We then carry out a literature study (N = 28) to examine how accessibility and its relationship with experience is currently conceptualized in VR research. Our results show that existing work seldom defines accessibility in the context of VR and that barrier-centric research is prevalent. Likewise, we show that experience—e.g., that of presence or immersion—is rarely designed for or evaluated, while participant feedback suggests that it is relevant for disabled users of VR. On this basis, we contribute a working definition of VR accessibility that considers experience a necessary condition for equitable access, and discuss the need for future work to focus on experience in the same way as VR research addressing non-disabled persons does.