Building enriching realities with children: Creating makerspaces that intertwine virtual and physical worlds in pediatric hospitals

Abstract

Virtual Reality (VR) has been used in the context of pediatric healthcare with clinical applications dominating the field, for example to distract a child from pain. We explore a research gap to use VR for enrichment by creating a makerspace with distributed access across the pediatric hospital. The aim is to weave enjoyment into the hospital experience while also empowering children to create their own virtual worlds. The envisioned makerspace forms part of an infrastructure of care to additionally broaden the therapeutic and communication opportunities for patients and carers. We conducted a series of 8 generative workshops with 15 participants (aged 8 to 16), who engaged in worldbuilding and narrative storytelling using the Tinytown platform in VR. Through observation of participants’ engagement with VR, we identified three different maker identities (explorer, artisan, planner) who would benefit from different technology assets and support in a makerspace. Further our findings characterize the experience of enrichment through worldbuilding in VR, and identify values to embed and risks to mitigate in makerspaces in pediatric hospitals. We contribute a set of design considerations for enrichment through VR and building makerspaces for children and adolescents in pediatric settings. Finally we provide reflections on conducting generative research in VR with children and adolescents.