Capturing the Experiences of Simulated Writing for Novice Virtual Reality Users

Introduction: Modern virtual-reality (VR) systems afford opportunities to study how writers adapt their everyday writing practices to virtual environments while adjusting to real-world materiality. Based on a multi-institutional study of writers’ activities, this tutorial offers recommendations for designing and conducting test sessions to capture the user experience of first-time VR users in simulated writing scenarios. Key concepts: We situate VR within existing literature regarding design, human–computer interaction, usability, and the notions of presence, embodiment, and materiality. Key lessons: We present five key lessons to consider for testing writing in VR. 1. Space matters when studying participants writing with technologies. 2. Some VR applications are exclusive to devices. 3. A focus on brief tasks anticipates what writers will encounter when they write with a VR headset for the first time ever or in a professional context. 4. For understanding embodied actions, researchers should also capture the first-person view of the participant wearing the designated headset. 5. Media-rich transcripts create records of what was spoken in the sessions as well as notating, through text and media, what actions were taken by participants. Implications for practice: VR research depends on institutional infrastructure, embodied participation, and researcher intervention to adjust usability testing and mental models. These challenges provide exciting opportunities for TPC research and classroom projects that introduce VR.