Virtual Reality to Address the Impact of Emigration on Family Relationships: A Case Study of Indian Emigrants

Uprooting oneself for the opportunity to pursue a better life oftentimes leaves a void in the hearts of those left behind. This paper highlights the impact of emigration on the family relationships among Indian emigrants and the feeling of emotional distance, proposing a solution for the same. Through interviews and surveys conducted on emigrants, and families of emigrants, it was found that despite geographical separation, there was an expectation to maintain the familial relationship as it was before emigration. Multi-faceted communication issues were also identified with time zone differences being the main contributor. A framework was developed to structure the problems and a requirement list was formed from the identified problems. Various design methodologies like brainstorming and card sorting were employed to explore and narrow down the solutions for these problems. To address the two limitations stated previously, a novel approach leveraging a virtual reality (VR) application with integrated communication functionalities was proposed that offered virtual tourism to bridge the physical distance, provided updates to users on the availability of their family members through the app and widget reminders, and an online community for families which promoted frequent communication. This solution aims to address the challenges posed by geographical separation for Indian emigrants and their families as well as the multifaceted communication barriers. This user-centred VR intervention, a novel approach in a nascent field, holds promise as a game-changer. By facilitating connection across physical divides, it has the potential to improve the quality of life for both parties.