A4 Refereed article in a conference publication
Being elsewhere: An information architecture approach to the design of a sense of presence in XR environments
Authors: Resmini Andrea, Lindenfalk Bertil, Jauhiainen Jussi S.
Editors: Kurosu Masaki, Hashizume Ayako
Conference name: International Conference on Human-Computer Interaction
Publishing place: Cham
Publication year: 2023
Journal: International Conference on Human-Computer Interaction
Book title : Human-Computer Interaction: Thematic Area, HCI 2023, Held as Part of the 25th HCI International Conference, HCII 2023, Copenhagen, Denmark, July 23–28, 2023, Proceedings, Part III
Series title: Lecture Notes in Computer Science
Volume: 14013
First page : 502
Last page: 521
ISBN: 978-3-031-35601-8
eISBN: 978-3-031-35602-5
ISSN: 0302-9743
eISSN: 1611-3349
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-35602-5_36(external)
Web address : https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-35602-5_36(external)
This paper frames extended reality (XR) as an information-based designed environment and argues that its design requires principles, tools and methods of digital design and experience design to be revisited and revised. Approaching the design of XR environments from the perspective of information architecture, the paper stipulates that the naturality commonly associated with a sense of presence in XR space cannot be achieved simply through the design or redesign of the visual interface layer, but rather requires a structural approach that leverages human embodiment and spatial thought. The paper tracks this conversation from interface to architecture by anchoring it to Bates’ seminal work on information seeking strategies as exaptation and on her seminal intuition of the role that the environment plays in supporting human information needs; to Horan’s definition of physical and digital space as elements in a continuum in which the ongoing expansion of digital is transforming the physical environment; to Benyon’s conceptualization of blended space as the novel space emerging from the intimate commingling of digital with physical; and to Resmini and Rosati’s heuristic information architecture principles for the design of digital/physical experiences. The paper then describes important structural challenges in the design of XR environments, illustrates the relevance of the framing introduced here by means of a brief case study, and concludes by offering a discussion and preliminary conclusions.