Extending Realities: Pioneering Immersive Technologies in Transdisciplinary Research

This project will bring together several Nordic institutions to convene a series of three transdisciplinary workshops around the emerging, innovative use of immersive audio-video technologies (XR/VR/AR) in social science and humanities research. Over the past several years, cutting-edge immersive video and audio capture and recording technology has been developed and implemented across several academic disciplines. At present, several Nordic institutions are leading the way in pioneering the use of these technologies in socio-cultural research. The aim of these workshops is to connect the researchers working across different disciplines at these institutions in order to solidify the Nordic countries as leaders in the development and application cutting-edge immersive technologies for addressing important social, cultural, behavioural and environmental problems in multi- and transdisciplinary ways. The workshops will be organized around three framing topics that address questions of theory, method and the application of these technologies in contemporary scholarship. The first workshop on method (Aalborg, August 2020) comprises a state-of-the-art showcase of the various research projects in XR currently being carried out in the Nordic countries and comprise a thorough discussion on the multiple methods and methodologies currently used. The second workshop on theory (Stockholm, May 2021) focuses on the associated advantages and challenges that various theoretical frameworks present for approaching important socio-cultural questions through immersive technology. The concluding workshop (Oulu, August 2021) hones in on the implications of XR for social scientific and humanities research, and maps out conceptual and praxeological possibilities for these technologies' applications. At the end of each workshop, team members will report on current research funding calls to consider for collaborative application. Additionally, the workshops will culminate in a proposal for the first scholarly edited volume on XR-mediated research, to be submitted to Cambridge University Press. The workshops will enable Nordic scholars to share and learn from each other's experiences in this swiftly changing field, with the aim of pushing forward the agenda of technologically mediated social, cultural, behavioural and environmental scholarship. The subsequent publication will disseminate internationally theories, methods and paths for future research across multiple disciplines.