LitForager: Exploring Multimodal Literature Foraging Strategies in Immersive Sensemaking

Abstract: Exploring and comprehending relevant academic literature is a vital yet challenging task for researchers, especially given the rapid expansion in research publications. This task fundamentally involves sensemaking - interpreting complex, scattered information sources to build understanding. While emerging immersive analytics tools have shown cognitive benefits like enhanced spatial memory and reduced mental load, they predominantly focus on information synthesis (e.g., organizing known documents). In contrast, the equally important information foraging phase - discovering and gathering relevant literature - remains underexplored within immersive environments, hindering a complete sensemaking workflow. To bridge this gap, we introduce LitForager, an interactive literature exploration tool designed to facilitate information foraging of research literature within an immersive sensemaking workflow using network-based visualizations and multimodal interactions. Developed with WebXR and informed by a formative study with researchers, LitForager supports exploration guidance, spatial organization, and seamless transition through a 3D literature network. An observational user study with 15 researchers demonstrated LitForager's effectiveness in supporting fluid foraging strategies and spatial sensemaking through its multimodal interface.