  We describe the design of an immersive virtual Cyberball task that included
avatar customization, and user feedback on this design. We first created a
prototype of an avatar customization template and added it to a Cyberball
prototype built in the Unity3D game engine. Then, we conducted in-depth user
testing and feedback sessions with 15 Cyberball stakeholders: five naive
participants with no prior knowledge of Cyberball and ten experienced
researchers with extensive experience using the Cyberball paradigm. We report
the divergent perspectives of the two groups on the following design insights;
designing for intuitive use, inclusivity, and realistic experiences versus
minimalism. Participant responses shed light on how system design problems may
contribute to or perpetuate negative experiences when customizing avatars. They
also demonstrate the value of considering multiple stakeholders' feedback in
the design process for virtual reality, presenting a more comprehensive view in
designing future Cyberball prototypes and interactive systems for social
science research.
