Virtual Dysphoria: A Non-Diagnostic Construct Proposal on Loss of Belonging to the Physical World After Prolonged Immersive Social Virtual Reality Use
André Cicivizzo · Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research) · 2026
Theoretical article proposing virtual dysphoria as a non-diagnostic construct for technology-mediated distress after prolonged immersive social VR use (e.g., VRChat): loss of belonging to the physical world and affective discordance between avatar and offline body (gender and form/species). Distinguishes the construct from clinical gender dysphoria and from virtual confabulation. Author: André Cicivizzo, UNIP.