Identifying Emotions Provoked by Unboxing in Virtual Reality

Unboxing a product, i.e. removing a newly acquired product from its packaging, often is a momentary strong emotional experience. Therefore, it is increasingly regarded as a critical aspect of packaging design. This study examines the user interaction when unboxing a product in Virtual Reality (VR) by comparing three plain textured boxes, each with a unique packaging design, and by inquiring the participants’ emotions provoked by each design. The boxes were created based on the following interaction design guidelines: freedom of interaction, interaction pattern, and richness of motor actions. The findings indicate that there is a difference between the strength of certain positive emotions when unboxing the three boxes in VR. This study discusses the relationships of certain interactions in VR, and how they can shape people’s expectations. These findings can serve as guidelines for how designers can improve the virtual experience through different interaction methods, and they provide insights into the differences between the unboxing experience in the real and the virtual world.