Children and Virtual Reality: Emerging Possibilities and Challenges

Virtual Reality is fast becoming a reality, with estimates that over 200m headsets will have been sold by 2020, and the market value for VR hardware and software reaching well over $20bn by then. Key players in the market currently include PlayStation with PSVR, Facebook with Oculus Rift, Google Cardboard and Daydream, Mattel with Viewmaster, and many other brands investing in content production for various audiences. One of those audiences is young people and children. “Children and Virtual Reality” is a collaboration between Dubit, Turner, WEARVR and the COST (European Cooperation in Science and Technology) Action DigiLitEY. Dubit, Turner and WEARVR are companies that specialise in digital, TV and VR content, with an interest in developing best practices around VR and children. DigiLitEY is a five year (2013-2017) academic network that focuses on existing and emerging communicative technologies for young children. This includes wearable technologies, 3D printers, robots, augmented reality, toys and games and relevant aspects of the Internet of Things. This report brings together industry research into the effects of VR on 8 to 12 year olds, and ideas that arose from a COST funded Think Tank to explore what the research findings might mean for the use of VR by under 8s