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Disconnected from Reality: Do the core concepts of the metaverse exclude disabled individuals?

Mark Quinlan

TL;DR

This paper describes what it sees as the most influential of philosophical and science fiction concepts in metaverse development, and explains how these might affect disabled individuals wishing to engage with said products.

Abstract

Commercially-driven metaverse development has been driven by philosophical and science fiction concepts. Through translating these concepts into products, the developers may have inadvertently excluded individuals with disabilities from this new expanded reality. This ideologically-driven development is presented in this paper through a brief background of what we see as the most influential of these concepts, and explain how these might affect disabled individuals wishing to engage with said products. It is our hope that these ideas prompt conversation on future inclusivity access from the concept stage of future metaverse development.

Disconnected from Reality: Do the core concepts of the metaverse exclude disabled individuals?

TL;DR

This paper describes what it sees as the most influential of philosophical and science fiction concepts in metaverse development, and explains how these might affect disabled individuals wishing to engage with said products.

Abstract

Commercially-driven metaverse development has been driven by philosophical and science fiction concepts. Through translating these concepts into products, the developers may have inadvertently excluded individuals with disabilities from this new expanded reality. This ideologically-driven development is presented in this paper through a brief background of what we see as the most influential of these concepts, and explain how these might affect disabled individuals wishing to engage with said products. It is our hope that these ideas prompt conversation on future inclusivity access from the concept stage of future metaverse development.
Paper Structure (1 section, 1 figure)

This paper contains 1 section, 1 figure.

Table of Contents

  1. Author Keywords

Figures (1)

  • Figure 1: Examples of virtual worlds. From the far-left, we see a 'fish' interact with an 'alien' (author's impression). Both are user-controlled avatars in Worldschat, circa 1994. Centre-left, we see a virtual art-show in Active Worlds, circa 1995. Centre-right, we see the Digital Swedish Embassy in Second-Life, circa 2007. Far-right, we see Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg take a 'selfie' within Horizon Worlds, circa 2021.