Editorial: The light and dark sides of virtual reality
Sebastian Oberdörfer, Domna Banakou, Ayush Bhargava · Frontiers in Virtual Reality · 2023
The application of Virtual Reality (VR) spans a wide range from entertainment to education and training, to 2 therapy, workflow optimization, and scientific research.Over the past decade, there has been extensive work 3 demonstrating how VR can enhance our lives and improve our well-being. VR has positively impacted 4 various fields,including among others facilitating distant communication, alleviating loneliness, providing 5 relaxation support, and improving remote learning. However, as with any innovative technology, there can 6 be unforeseen downsides to VR that may arise from overuse, poorly developed experiences or unethical 7 purposes.As a result, some positive use cases may have long-lasting negative effects, while originally 8 intended negative use cases may help overcome anxiety or treat disorders. For example, VR allows users to 9 isolate themselves in horror games which may be engaging but could negatively impact kids, or habituate 10 you to gambling with real money in environments where all external stimuli is heavily altered or reduced.With VR increasingly integrated into our daily lives through virtual workplaces, virtual social gatherings 12 and the Metaverse, it is critical to identify potential risks and establish design guidelines to ensure user