A Multi-User Virtual Reality Social Connecting Space for People Living with Dementia and Their Support Persons: A Participatory Action Research Study

Abstract

Digital technologies such as virtual reality (VR) are increasingly designed and implemented to support people living with dementia who are at risk of loneliness and/or social isolation. Multi-user VR (MUVR), which involves simultaneous user engagement and a sense of being present together in VR, may promote and maintain social connectedness between people living with dementia and their support persons. This paper focuses on Phase 4 of a larger participatory action research (PAR) project, which aimed to explore the usability, acceptability and feasibility of a MUVR application and its potential to support the social connectedness of people living with dementia and their support persons. The study involved five people living with dementia and their five support persons, who trialed the application in their homes over two PAR cycles. The researcher gathered feedback through individual semi-structured interviews and observational field notes. Reflexive thematic analysis guided qualitative data analysis, and the findings suggested that MUVR is a usable, acceptable, and feasible application for this population. The findings also indicated that MUVR shows promise in promoting or maintaining social connectedness among people living with dementia and their support persons. Nonetheless, further refinement is necessary to enhance the usability, acceptability and feasibility of the MUVR application, and these areas of refinement are presented in this paper, through design recommendations for future work.