The need for a theoretical framework to users’ levels of immersive experience in extended reality (XR): A pre-production interaction design perspective

The global creative industries are undergoing sustained expansion, driven by accelerated digital transformation, rising disposable incomes, and the continued growth of streaming and gaming platforms worldwide. Within this competitive context, designers and developers must understand diverse user experiences, particularly the nature and intensity of immersive experiences afforded by Extended Reality (XR) platforms, to achieve market success. Despite this need, existing approaches to user research in immersive environments are applied after production, focusing on evaluation rather than anticipation. Consequently, designers lack systematic guidance during early decision-making stages. This paper therefore proposes a theoretical framework for classifying levels of user immersion in XR environments, developed through rigorous qualitative meta-analysis (QMA). The resulting framework aims to delineate distinct degrees of immersive experience and translate theoretical insights into actionable pre-production guidance. This contribution advances User Experience (UX) scholarship and responds to an urgent professional need for XR design frameworks globally today.