The Limits of Immersion : Disability and Virtual Reality

Available open access digitally under CC-BY-NC-ND licence.

Virtual Reality promises immersion for all, yet it is built around assumptions of able-bodied users that leave many disabled people behind.

Drawing on original research with users, care providers and developers, this book examines how mainstream Virtual Reality design encodes a narrow idea of the ‘normal’ body – and the real costs of that choice. It shows how decisions made at the design stage, often invisible to non-disabled users, create barriers around vision, movement and sensory experience.

Moving beyond critique, it argues for a fundamental rethinking of VR design centring diverse bodies and minds. In doing so, it not only reframes accessibility, but expands what VR can be, and who it is truly for.