A preliminary study on the effectiveness of a virtual reality system to enhance Tonglen compassion practice
Ylenia D'elia, Catherine I. Andreu, Aida Palacios, Inmaculada Remolar Quintana, Ignacio Miralles Tena, Jon Andoni Fernández Moyano, Desirée Colombo, Rocío Herrero, Rosa M Baños, Ausiàs Cebolla, Maja Wrzesien
Virtual Reality June 19, 2026 DOI: 10.1007/s10055-026-01400-8 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Preliminary study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 30 |
| Population | Adults who practiced Tonglen meditation in VR |
| Intervention | Tonglen-VR |
| Duration | 15-minute session |
| Measures | self-reported compassion, criticism, affect, heart rate variability |
| Key points | Compassion and positive affect increased, while criticism and negative affect decreased after a 15-minute VR-guided Tonglen session; heart rate variability increased, indicating parasympathetic activation. |
Abstract
Compassion-based interventions have been shown to improve numerous mental health outcomes. However, they are time- and effort-intensive and are associated with high dropout rates. Virtual Reality (VR) could be a useful tool to enhance compassion practice by immersing users in a VR environment, thus facilitating the construction and sustainment of mental images necessary for the practice. The objective of this preliminary study is to describe the VR system and assess its capacity to successfully guide a complex compassion practice: Tonglen meditation (TM). 30 participants practiced TM for 15 min in a VR environment (Tonglen-VR). Assessment took place before and after TM evaluating self-reported, compassion, criticism, and affect. Moreover, heart rate variability was collected during the whole session as an objective indicator of compassion state. Results showed significantly higher levels of compassion and positive affect, coupled with a decrease in criticism and negative affect. Physiological markers showed a significant increase in heart-rate variability compared to baseline, indicating higher parasympathetic nervous system activation. Moreover, participants showed high engagement and level of compassion practice quality. This study provides preliminary evidence regarding the effectiveness of a Tonglen-VR system as a promising tool in improving practice of compassion.