As more businesses increasingly connect with people around the world and collaborate remotely, this enables collaboration across geographical boundaries and diverse cultural backgrounds. However, it also reveals significant communication barriers. Differences in time zones, cultural misunderstandings, and varying levels of technological access can be obstacles to effective communication (Gajendran & Harrison, 2007). Therefore, solving these problems is important for improving collaborative team engagement, intercultural communication, and productivity.
Emerging technologies such as Virtual Reality (VR), Augmented Reality (AR), and Extended Reality (XR) offer innovative solutions to improve communication issues in these remote settings. Current research suggests that VR, AR, and XR can create immersive environments that facilitate more engaging interactions among team members (Fereydooni & Walker, 2020; Trindade et al., 2023). Especially, VR can enhance remote communication and collaboration by allowing for more dynamic and engaging interactions between team members. Indeed, by providing a VR environment for meeting spaces, VR can bridge the gap of physical distance and increase a sense of presence and connection among remote colleagues (Ofek et al., 2020). Beyond communication, VR can also enhance cross-cultural understanding between different countries. Rao et al. (2023) found that VR environments allow team members from diverse cultural backgrounds to engage in real-time, reducing misunderstandings caused by language barriers and non-verbal communication. This interactive experience helps build stronger empathy and understanding, leading to better teamwork and cooperation in global settings.
This study will focus on how VR technology can bridge communication gaps and assist interactions remotely. Particularly, this project aims to investigate how VR can affect communication within remote teams between South Korea and Indiana, U.S., and how VR technology can help employees overcome existing communication barriers, enhance intercultural understanding, and improve collaboration. The methodology includes an experimental approach involving approximately 100 participants, focusing on collaborations among organizational members between South Korea and the United States (U.S.). In the frame work of Computer-mediated communication theoretical model, survey items will measure communication before and after the VR experience, aiming to evaluate how immersive environments can reduce cultural barriers and improve overall team collaboration.
