Assessing the contribution of immersive technologies to SDG4: inclusion oriented practices in Spanish higher education programs

Purpose This study aims to examine whether the use of immersive learning technologies in higher education programs is associated with the explicit promotion of inclusion, understood as a core dimension of Sustainable Development Goal 4 (SDG4), within Spanish universities. Design/methodology/approach A quantitative, cross-sectional design was used using a data set of 232 immersive learning programs identified through a systematic web-based audit of Spanish higher education institutions. Inclusion was coded as a binary dependent variable based on explicit program-level references to accessibility, equity or inclusive pedagogies. Hierarchical binary logistic regression models were estimated to assess the relationship between immersive technologies and inclusion, controlling for regional context, institution type, academic field and educational level. Robustness checks included probit models, heteroskedasticity-robust standard errors, interaction testing and variable-exclusion analyses. Findings Across all model specifications, no immersive technology virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), mixed reality (MR) and metaverse environments showed a statistically significant association with the explicit promotion of inclusion. While MR-based programs consistently exhibited positive coefficients, these effects did not reach conventional significance thresholds. Among contextual factors, regional context emerged as a marginal predictor, with programs outside Cataluña slightly more likely to reference inclusion. Research limitations/implications Limitations This study relies on program-level information from publicly available institutional sources, which captures formal statements on immersive technology use and inclusion. Inclusion was operationalized as a binary variable based on explicit references, potentially overlooking implicit inclusive practices. Finally, the focus on Spanish higher education may limit the generalizability of the findings to other national contexts. Originality/value This study offers one of the first large-scale, program-level analyses linking immersive technologies to inclusion within the SDG4 framework. By showing that immersion does not inherently ensure inclusion, it challenges techno-deterministic assumptions and advances evidence-based debates on equity in digital higher education.