Dancing in virtual reality as an inclusive platform for social and physical fitness activities: a survey

Abstract

AbstractVirtual reality (VR) has recently seen significant development in interaction with computers and the visualization of information. More and more people are using virtual and immersive technologies in their daily lives, especially for entertainment, fitness, and socializing purposes. This paper presents a qualitative evaluation of a large sample of users using a VR platform for dancing ($$N=292$$ N = 292 ); we study the users’ motivations, experiences, and requirements for using VR as an inclusive platform for dancing, mainly as a social or physical activity. We used an artificial intelligence platform (OpenAI) to extract categories or clusters of responses automatically. We organized the data into six user motivation categories: fun, fitness, social activity, pandemic, escape from reality, and professional activities. Our results indicate that dancing in virtual reality is a different experience than in the real world, and there is a clear distinction in the user’s motivations for using VR platforms for dancing. Our survey results suggest that VR is a tool that can positively impact physical and mental well-being through dancing. These findings complement the related work, help in identifying the use cases, and can be used to assist future improvements of VR dance applications.