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The metaverse, a digital ecosystem that combines Virtual Reality (VR), Augmented Reality (AR), and Artificial Intelligence (AI), has completely changed how people connect with one another, work, and play. It offers young adults, who are digital natives, both opportunities and challenges and is increasingly relevant to the mental health of young adults (López et al., 2024). This article aims to briefly discuss both the benefits and risks associated with the effects of using the metaverse on mental health in adolescents and young adults. It delves into how immersive experiences can be harnessed therapeutically while addressing factors related to their impact on psychological well-being.
On one hand, the metaverse provides opportunities for social interaction through activities like gaming or participating in live events. These interactions can positively impact young adults’ mental health by reducing social isolation and enhancing social connections (Ángeles, 2023). However, while these interactions offer a sense of community and inclusion, they may not fully replace physical social interactions or foster deep meaningful relationships (Kuss & Griffiths, 2011). Engagement with virtual content in the metaverse can evoke pleasant emotions such as joy or excitement but also poses risks of emotional overload due to overwhelming experiences (Kim & Eun Joo Kim, 2023; Creagh, 2023). Negative impacts include increased stress and anxiety from triggering content. Prolonged use can lead to physical health issues like eye strain and reduced activity levels if not balanced with real-world activities. The metaverse also influences users’ self-esteem through avatars that promote unrealistic standards (Slater & Sanchez-Vives, 2016), while excessive use can lead to addiction and neglect of real-world responsibilities. Additionally, privacy concerns related to data security threats or online harassment can cause stress, affecting users’ mental well-being (Wang et al., 2022).
The metaverse is a synthetic environment where the users interact in a more immersive way. A high degree of embodiment enhances the user’s sense of immersion and presence. Presence, the feeling of ‘being there’, plays a dual role in emotional experiences. It serves as a prerequisite by directing attention and creating a mental representation of the virtual environment, which then allows real emotions to be activated. This can blur the borders between VR and the real lives of adolescents and young adults. The metaverse is considered the most realistic and potentially addictive form of media (Hinz et al., n.d.) due to its immersive nature, as embodying a character/avatar that mirrors one’s profound wishes for appearance creates a highly addictive potential. While the user can escape from their negative selves using an idealized avatar in a virtual environment, those virtual profiles can simultaneously provoke habits of comparing oneself with others, leading to unrealistic standards of beauty and lifestyle, and worsening body dysmorphia. Most commonly, VR gaming can induce aggressive behaviour (Kim & Eun Joo Kim, 2023). Reduced sensitivity and empathy in the metaverse because of anonymity can lead to actual violence, not only in the virtual world but also in the real world. Technological factors also have an influence on mental health in the context of the metaverse and young adults. To consider some of the most important aspects, accessibility is one of the most important factors. How easy is it for users to engage in the metaverse or virtual environments? For example, internet connection, device availability, user-friendly interfaces, and affordability are important in determining how much access they have to the metaverse.
Therapeutic applications
The metaverse offers several therapeutic applications that can benefit young adults’ mental health. It provides users with control over their virtual environment, allowing them to self-design spaces that are restorative and pleasant. Therapeutic applications in the metaverse leverage body ownership to enhance treatment outcomes for various mental health conditions. The metaverse provides a strong sense of embodiment by simulating ownership of a digital body, which can be particularly beneficial for treating disorders related to body dysmorphia or eating disorders, creating an embodiment illusion. This illusion helps individuals integrate new perceptions of their body, helping them learn to distinguish between cognitive and emotional experiences and their actual bodies.
By embodying avatars with specific traits, individuals can exhibit behaviours consistent with those characteristics, such as empathy, altruism, self-confidence, or even aggression (Yee & Bailenson, 2007). This is a phenomenon called the Proteus effect, where the behaviour of individuals in virtual environments is influenced by the characteristics of their avatars. Therapeutic applications suggest that users, such as adolescents and young adults, tend to embody and exhibit behaviours consistent with their avatars’ traits due to internalized stereotypes and expectations associated with those characteristics. For instance, an avatar’s visual characteristics influence a user’s behaviours based on societal stereotypes. This phenomenon also confirms the self-perception theory, which explains how individuals infer their attitudes and emotions from observing their own behaviour in virtual environments. If an avatar is perceived as confident or intelligent, such as one resembling Albert Einstein, users may adopt these traits (Coesel et al., 2024). Coesel et al. (2024) further suggest that priming plays a role in shaping user behaviour through unconscious associations with certain avatar attributes.
Another psychological phenomenon, body swapping in VR, involves inducing an illusion in which individuals feel they have transferred into a different body. It is also known as the body transfer illusion, which is achieved by combining a first-person perspective with synchronized visual-perceptual stimuli. It has been used in treating conditions like anorexia nervosa by altering perceptions of body size and shape (Serino et al., 2019). Systems like ‘The Machine to Be Another’ facilitate empathy by allowing individuals to experience life from another person’s perspective, fostering active perspective-taking and empathic concern. Banakou et al. (2016) have shown that embodying a different racial avatar can reduce ethnic prejudice by fostering empathy and perspective-taking. Furthermore, the size of the avatar influences object perception; users may overestimate or underestimate object sizes based on their virtual body’s dimensions (Kilteni et al., 2012). Users embodying avatars with specific motor skills, such as Jimi Hendrix for musical performance, may exhibit improved motor behaviour consistent with those traits.
The metaverse is also used for cognitive activation. Engaging in activities within the metaverse can stimulate cognitive functions like problem-solving and spatial awareness, potentially benefiting adolescents and young adults with cognitive impairments (Osimo et al., 2015).
Moreover, the metaverse is used as a consultation platform, where avatars in the metaverse facilitate more comfortable consultations with mental health professionals, especially for those experiencing high social anxiety or interpersonal trauma.
In conclusion, the metaverse offers a promising platform for addressing mental health challenges among adolescents and young adults. Its immersive capabilities allow for the creation of therapeutic environments that can aid in emotional well-being and stress reduction. By leveraging virtual reality technologies, the metaverse provides accessible and inclusive services that can simulate traditional therapeutic settings while offering novel approaches such as exposure therapy and social skills training.
By Nishara Perera
References
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