"The Closest I Could Be": VR-Facilitated Daydreaming as a Tool for Experiential Justice Among Older Black Adults

Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) are often scrutinized for their role in social inequity. Our study explores this issue, focusing on how virtual reality (VR) can mitigate experiential inequities. We worked with older Black adults, a community facing structural barriers to leisure activities like travel or concerts. For this group, daydreaming is a key practice for symbolic fulfillment. We investigate how VR can enhance these important imaginative experiences. Our findings show that VR makes daydreams significantly more vivid and emotionally resonant. This offers participants profound symbolic satisfaction. For some, it even motivated real-world aspirational planning. Participants also reported feelings of emotional restoration and a sharper, sometimes frustrating, awareness of their structural constraints. This study contributes by framing VR as a practical tool for experiential justice. We demonstrate that immersive technology can meaningfully address leisure inequities. It can move beyond simple escapism to affirm the identities and aspirations of historically marginalized communities.