A Diary Study in Social Virtual Reality: Impact of Avatars with Disability Signifiers on the Social Experiences of People with Disabilities
Kexin Zhang, Elmira Deldari, Yaxing Yao, Yuhang Zhao · 2023 · ASSETS '23: Proceedings of the 25th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility · doi:10.1145/3597638.3608388
Summary
This paper presents a two-week diary study exploring how avatars with disability signifiers (DS) affect the social experiences of people with disabilities (PWD) in social virtual reality platforms, specifically VRChat. Disability signifiers are visual features added to avatars that represent a disability, such as virtual wheelchairs, walking canes, prosthetic limbs, or hearing aids. The researchers recruited 10 participants with various disabilities and had them use VRChat in two phases: one week using avatars without DS and one week using avatars with DS. Participants logged their daily social interactions, recording details about conversations, reactions from other users, and their own feelings about the experience. The study addresses a gap in understanding how disability identity translates into virtual social spaces, where users have unprecedented control over their self-presentation. Unlike physical spaces where disabilities may be visible, virtual environments allow users to choose whether and how to disclose their disability status. The research is grounded in disability studies frameworks, particularly the social model of disability, and draws on prior work in avatar self-representation and online disability disclosure. The methodology combined structured diary entries with semi-structured interviews to capture both in-the-moment experiences and reflective insights about how DS shaped social dynamics in VR.
Key findings
The study revealed that avatars with disability signifiers served as powerful conversation starters, prompting more meaningful discussions about disability compared to avatars without DS. Six out of ten participants experienced harassment when using DS avatars, with the researchers identifying six distinct types: ableist language, physical harassment targeting the DS (e.g., knocking over a virtual wheelchair), mimicking disabilities, discrimination in group activities, being treated as inferior, and invasive questioning. A significant perception gap emerged — many non-disabled users interpreted DS as jokes, memes, or trolling rather than genuine identity expression, reflecting broader societal attitudes toward disability. Despite experiencing harassment, nine out of ten participants expressed a desire to continue using avatars with DS, valuing the authentic self-representation and the meaningful connections DS facilitated. Participants were selective about which disabilities to disclose through avatars, choosing to represent physical and sensory disabilities but avoiding mental health or cognitive disability signifiers due to fear of stereotyping and stigma. The study also found that DS avatars attracted more attention from other users, creating both opportunities for positive engagement and increased vulnerability to negative interactions.
Relevance
This research has significant implications for the design of accessible and inclusive virtual social platforms. As VR adoption grows, understanding how disability identity functions in these spaces is essential for creating welcoming environments. The findings highlight that current social VR platforms lack adequate tools for managing disability disclosure and protecting users from harassment — there are no consent mechanisms for interacting with disability signifiers, limited moderation tools, and few options for reporting disability-specific harassment. For accessibility practitioners, this study underscores the importance of considering social accessibility alongside functional accessibility. It is not enough to make VR platforms technically usable by PWD; the social dynamics within these spaces must also be addressed. The identified harassment patterns provide a framework for developing targeted moderation and safety features, and the finding that most participants still wanted DS despite harassment suggests that supporting authentic self-representation should be a design priority.
Tags: social virtual reality · disability signifiers · avatars · harassment · identity expression · disability disclosure · VRChat · diary study