Forming Digital Workspace: Current State and Applications of Extended Reality in Virtual Teams

Extended reality (XR) has been widely applied as an umbrella term encompassing virtual reality, augmented reality, and mixed reality. Despite extensive research on XR applications in various contexts, little attention has been drawn to its utilization in work scenarios, particularly in virtual teams. This study is a systematic literature review of virtual teams utilizing XR in the digital workspace, incorporating related articles from four scientific databases over the past decade. The review focuses on two aspects: the current state of XR implementation in virtual teams and how technology addresses the digital collaborative process. Findings highlight team types, application areas, collaboration modes, and key actions associated with XR usage. A theoretical gap is revealed, as previous studies focus on either the technological aspects of XR or its outcomes. Additionally, this study proposes a model to illustrate how XR technologies empower virtual teams, providing valuable insight for organizations regarding its potential usage

Experiences in Collecting 360° Video Data and Collaborating Remotely in Virtual Reality

This paper reports on a pilot project called Remote Research and Collaboration Using VR and 360° Video (RReCo) that was carried out in late Spring 2021 at the University of Oulu, Finland. The project explored new ways of collecting, viewing and analysing video data for the purposes of engaging in remote, collaborative research on social interaction and activity. Here we share our experiences in collecting different types of video data, especially 360°, and relate those to our user experiences in analysing the data together in virtual reality. Our remote multisite data sessions were organised using software for immersive qualitative analytics, virtual reality and live streaming. In this paper, we also reflect on the similarities and differences between our data sets, especially with view to how awareness of different technical setups may help in making informed choices, and thereby increase the reliability of research on social interaction

Amplification of co-presence in group visits to virtual houses with graphical representations from video games

An individual can observe one’s surrounding space. The space can contain various elements (e.g., objects, furniture), which in turn convey visual information to the individual, giving the sense of being present within the space. The space can be filled by additional individuals who also aim to observe their surroundings. The human ability to observe and interact with the surrounding elements plays a vital role in creating a feeling of being socially present and connected in a physical space, also know as co-presence. In the virtual world, similar sensations of co-presence are often conveyed through graphical representations. These representations, along with other methods aimed at enhancing co-presence (such as interfaces designed to foster a sense of shared presence), have been extensively researched and utilized in single player and multiplayer video games. The present study explores the application of some of those strategies to enhance the feeling of co-presence among individuals during virtual group house tours, which is a relevant application scenario to the real estate industry and architectural participatory design. To this aim, a tool was developed and evaluated in a user study involving 33 participants. The findings indicate that all the implemented strategies effectively enhance the sense of co-presence within the virtual environment and encourage meaningful collaborative interactions.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Designing Virtual Environments for Social Engagement in Older Adults

Virtual reality (VR) is increasingly used as a platform for social interaction, including as a means for older adults to maintain engagement. However, there has been limited research to examine the features of social VR that are most relevant to older adults experiences. The current study was conducted to qualitatively analyze the behavior of older adults in a collaborative VR environment and evaluate aspects of design that affected their engagement outcomes. We paired 36 participants over the age of 60, from three diverse geographic locations, and asked them to interact in collaborative VR modules. Video-based observation methods and thematic analyses were used to study the resulting interactions. The results indicated a strong link between perceived spatial presence in the VR and social engagement, while also highlighting the importance of individual personality and compatibility. The study provides new insights into design guidelines that could improve social VR programs for older adults

Becoming familiar: how infrastructure engineers begin to use collaborative virtual reality in their interdisciplinary practice

The design community has recently shown increased interest in using virtual reality (VR) in project review contexts. While single-user headsets currently attract most VR-related attention, room-like immersive VR environments can help facilitate design team engagement and shared exploration of projects. However, to date relatively little research concerns how large-scale VR environments are used in and adapted for professional practice. To address this gap, we set up a bespoke portable VR display system called 3D-MOVE in a major UK construction office to investigate how project team members used and evaluated collaborative VR processes. Over a three-month period, we conducted ten video-recorded VR sessions to observe how engineering professionals familiarize themselves with VR in order to help inform its deployment in practice. The study results show that emergent discussions about design models and questioning of design-related assumptions dominated all observed sessions, even though they were staged as technology demonstrations; which supports the social aspects of large-scale collaborative VR processes. However, before participants could focus on design review, they had to familiarize themselves with the VR technology and time required to do so varied depending on the complexity of the VR configuration. As the participants engaged with the VR environment, they reflected on their processes, requirements and expectations and provided feedback for improving the VR experience. Articulating this familiarization with collaborative VR can inform its deployment with respect to minimizing the learning curve and any distractions or discomfort associated with its use while maximizing the aspects of value-added collaborative engagement. Additional considerations concerning content, interactivity and logistics emerged as necessary to address before VR technologies can become standard practice