Virtual Reality for Mindfulness: Aspects for Helping or Hindering Focus and Practice

I. D. W. Bosman; Mila Bujić; L. Cosio; Oğuz Buruk; Kristine Jørgenson; Juho Hamari

doi:10.1145/3681716.3689446

Virtual Reality for Mindfulness: Aspects for Helping or Hindering Focus and Practice

I. D. W. Bosman, Mila Bujić, L. Cosio, Oğuz Buruk, Kristine Jørgenson, Juho Hamari

International Conference on Entertainment and Media in the Ubiquitous Era October 8, 2024 DOI: 10.1145/3681716.3689446 (opens in new tab)

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Study at a glance

AI-extracted from the abstract

Characteristics	Qualitative study Peer reviewed
Intervention	guided body-scan meditation in virtual reality
Topics	Meditation
Key findings	Audio-visual focus points in VR can aid concentration for some participants but distract others during a guided body-scan meditation.

Abstract

Virtual reality is increasingly being explored as a tool for facilitating mindfulness practices, such as through various guided meditation applications currently available. However, it is unclear how the technological affordances of virtual reality align with the goals of mindfulness and how such experiences can be designed to optimally exploit these affordances. We use a guided body-scan meditation in virtual reality and qualitative data from interviews to offer general insight into users’ experiences of virtual reality as a tool for mindfulness and relaxation more broadly. Our results highlight the potential to create audio-visual focus points for helping some participants concentrate, but also the pitfalls of this approach as a source of distraction for others. We point out avenues for further research, specifically into the interactive nature of VR, the benefits and drawbacks of novelty, alternative modes of self-representation, and the potential gap between VR-based practice and everyday mindfulness.

Comparable studies

Other qualitative studies on meditation, most cited first.

Study	Year	Design	Participants
The varieties of contemplative experience: A mixed-methods study of meditation-related challenges in Western Buddhists Western Buddhist meditation practitioners and experts in Theravāda, Zen, and Tibetan...	2017	Qualitative study with mixed-methods
The Effects of Mindfulness-based Stress Reduction on Nurse Stress and Burnout Nurses in a hospital system	2004	Implementation study with mixed methods
An exploratory mixed methods study of the acceptability and effectiveness of mindfulness -based cognitive therapy for patients with active depression and anxiety in primary care Primary care patients with recurrent depression or recurrent depression and anxiety	2006	Exploratory mixed methods study	n = 13
A qualitative study of mindfulness‐based cognitive therapy for depression Participants in mindfulness-based cognitive therapy in a mental-health context	2001	Qualitative study	n = 7
Effortless awareness: using real time neurofeedback to investigate correlates of posterior cingulate cortex activity in meditators' self-report Meditators	2013	Qualitative study using grounded theory methodology

Citations in the library

Cited by 1

Measuring Altered States of Consciousness in Virtual Reality: A Systematic Analysis of Assessment Methods HCI International 2025 – Late Breaking Papers 2026

Cites 6

and 1 more in the library