Author Identifier
Brennen Mills: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7409-7007
Martin Masek: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8620-6779
Julie Boston: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3892-6031
Wyatt de Souza: https://orcid.org/0009-0007-3772-6138
Sara Hansen: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8622-6710
Document Type
Journal Article
Publication Title
Virtual Reality
Volume
28
Issue
4
Publisher
Springer
School
School of Medical and Health Sciences / School of Science / School of Education
RAS ID
72549
Funders
Western Australian Government Department of Jobs, Science, Tourism and Innovation / Australian Department of Defence (G1005179)
Abstract
While co-design methods are crucial for developing digital educational interventions that are user-centred, contextually relevant, inclusive, and effective in meeting the diverse needs of learners and educators, little attention has been paid to the potential value of co-design processes for digital application development in the Defence context. This research gauged the efficacy of combining a generative co-design framework making use of agile and iterative co-design principles in an applied research and development project. The project produced an immersive virtual reality based digital solution in collaboration with the Australian Defence Force Special Operations Command (SOCOMD) Army. Specifically, the ParaVerse project sought to develop a solution considering the advanced Tactics, Techniques and Procedures (TTPs) relevant to special operations soldiers for advanced parachute training. A Defence advisory group consisting of a series of subject matter experts was formulated to consult with the research and development team over the course of the co-design process. End-user testing with 35 SOCOMD personnel demonstrated the value of the ParaVerse application for SOCOMD personnel, speaking to the success of the leveraged generative co-design model. End-users rated ParaVerse as having greater capacity to influence education and training practices for SOCOMD and Defence generally in comparison to a pre-existing virtual parachute simulator. ParaVerse was also rated higher for satisfaction and useability and was associated with fewer instances of motion sickness. The Generative Co-Design Framework leveraged for this research provides one roadmap on how to integrate end-users in innovation design, particularly for projects working across the nexus of Defence and academia.
DOI
10.1007/s10055-024-01053-5
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Comments
Mills, B., Masek, M., Boston, J., de Souza, W., Snell, J., Bender, S., ... & Hansen, S. (2024). ParaVerse: Co-design of a parachute rehearsal and training virtual-reality enhanced simulator for the Australian Defence Force: Combining a generative co-design framework and an agile approach to development. Virtual Reality, 28, (161). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10055-024-01053-5