VRtoER: When Virtual Reality leads to Accidents: A Community on Reddit as Lens to Insights about VR Safety

Abstract

Virtual Reality (VR) has gained a relevant market share as a product for consumers in the gaming industry. Compared to other hardware, VR headsets isolate users from reality visually to create immersive experiences. However, when not used correctly, VR can lead to accidents, for instance, when colliding with objects in the real environment. A community on Reddit has formed around the topic of VR-related accidents and injuries called r/VRtoER, in which users upload media of accidents and injuries through the use of VR. 82 posts of the community were analyzed to understand 1) the cause for the accident, 2) why it happened, and 3) how it could be prevented. Preliminary findings are presented based on the analysis. The results show that in 26.83% of analyzed cases, the environment was not suitable for VR use. The analysis has also shown six cases in which VR use led to child endangerment.