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

TL;DR

This paper examines how the core concepts of the metaverse, driven by commercial and science fiction ideas, may unintentionally exclude disabled individuals, emphasizing the need for inclusive design from the outset.

Contribution

It highlights the potential exclusion of disabled individuals in metaverse development and advocates for inclusive design principles to be integrated early in the development process.

Findings

Core metaverse concepts may exclude disabled users

Current development practices lack sufficient accessibility considerations

Inclusive design can improve accessibility for disabled individuals

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.