Envisioning Posthuman/More-than-Human Futures for XR through HCI: A Critical Reorientation

Paper Title

Envisioning Posthuman/More-than-Human Futures for XR through HCI: A Critical Reorientation

Publication Info

• Topic area: Posthuman and more-than-human approaches in Extended Reality (XR) within Human–Computer Interaction (HCI).
• Keywords: Extended Reality, posthuman HCI, more-than-human design, speculative worlding, distributed decentering, entangled becoming, multispecies interaction, embodiment, ecological accountability, speculative design.

Background and Problem

• Problem / challenge: XR research in HCI is predominantly human-centered, focusing on perceptual fidelity, anthropomorphic representation, and instrumental control, which limits its potential for posthuman/more-than-human exploration.
• Significance: Addressing ecological crises and advancing relational, inclusive, and transformative design in XR is crucial for rethinking human-centered paradigms in HCI and imagining alternative futures.
• Motivation and related work: Posthuman and more-than-human perspectives in HCI have gained traction, emphasizing relationality, interdependence, and ecological accountability. However, XR research has yet to fully integrate these perspectives, despite its unique affordances for immersive and multisensory experiences.

Solution

• Proposed approach: A co-constitutive framework for XR and posthuman/more-than-human HCI that reorients XR’s domains of space, body, and interaction through speculative worlding, distributed decentering, and entangled becoming.
• Novelty:
  1. Conceptual reframing of XR affordances (presence, immersion, engagement, embodiment) through posthuman/more-than-human values.
  2. Integration of speculative design, productive oscillation, and provotyping into XR methodologies.
  3. Development of imaginaries for XR environments, embodiments, and enactments that prioritize multispecies and ecological relations.
  4. Introduction of a co-constitutive framework linking XR and posthuman/more-than-human HCI.
• Procedure and key techniques:
  • Reframe XR space as speculative worlding to stage multispecies interdependence.
  • Redefine XR embodiment as distributed decentering to enable hybrid and collective modes of existence.
  • Reposition XR interaction as entangled becoming to emphasize emergent, multidirectional relations.
  • Adapt HCI methods such as thing ethnography, design fiction, and provotyping to XR’s immersive and multisensory capacities.

Results

• Concrete findings:
  • XR affordances were mapped to posthuman concepts: presence as worlding, immersion as decentering, engagement as enactment, and embodiment as becoming.
  • Proposed XR imaginaries include a solarpunk urban environment, a honeybee collective, and plant–tech interactions, illustrating speculative, multispecies, and ecological futures.
  • A co-constitutive framework was developed to show how XR domains mutually shape one another through situated practice.
• Advantage over baselines:
  • Moves beyond human-centered optimization to integrate posthuman/more-than-human values into XR design.
  • Provides a structured methodology for translating abstract concepts into experiential XR practices.
• Experiments / evaluation:
  • Conceptual analysis and review of existing HCI methods adapted to XR affordances.
  • Proposed scenarios for speculative worlding, distributed decentering, and entangled becoming, grounded in posthuman/more-than-human principles.
  • Visualized frameworks and imaginaries for XR applications.
• Limitations and future work:
  • Risks of abstraction: XR speculations may remain detached from lived contexts.
  • Anthropocentrism: XR representations of non-human entities are shaped by human sensory and cognitive frameworks.
  • Inclusivity and sustainability: High costs, access barriers, and environmental impacts of XR technologies must be addressed.
  • Future research should focus on long-term empirical studies, socially relevant applications, and integration of non-Western and Indigenous perspectives.

Summary

This paper proposes a critical reorientation of XR research in HCI by integrating posthuman and more-than-human perspectives. It introduces a co-constitutive framework that redefines XR’s domains of space, body, and interaction as speculative worlding, distributed decentering, and entangled becoming. By adapting HCI methodologies such as speculative design and provotyping to XR’s immersive capacities, the paper demonstrates how XR can stage multispecies and ecological relations. The framework highlights XR’s potential to enact relational, inclusive, and transformative futures, while addressing challenges of abstraction, anthropocentrism, and sustainability. Future research should ground these commitments in socially meaningful and situated practices.