The Influence of Virtual Reality on Human Consciousness from the Positions of Christian Anthropology and Modern Psychology
St Tikhons University Review Series IV Pedagogy Psychology September 29, 2023 DOI: 10.15382/sturiv202370.90-102 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Key points | Argues that scientific and Christian anthropological assessments of virtual reality's influence on consciousness diverge because they rest on different understandings of consciousness: science links it to brain activity, which the author contends oversimplifies it, while Christian anthropology treats humans as moral beings with a three-level mind. The author claims uncontrolled virtual reality use produces harms such as screen addiction, cognitive impairment, and dehumanization on the scientific account, and loss of inner unity, passionate thoughts, and spiritual devastation on the Christian account, and proposes that virtual technologies be evaluated within a Christian worldview. |
Abstract
The relevance of this article is determined by the penetration of information technologies into all spheres of human life, the impact on his consciousness and personality. The purpose of the article is to show the differences in the assessment of the influence of virtual reality on human consciousness in modern psychology and from the point of view of Christian anthropology. The hypothesis is proved that the reason for these differences lies in the different understanding of the essence, structure and mechanisms of consciousness in science and patristic teaching. The key approaches to understanding consciousness in the neurosciences, in domestic and foreign psychology are described. The Christian approach to human consciousness, the connection with the concepts of "freedom", "conscience", "shame", "duty", "responsibility", "mind", "reason", the patristic teaching about the 3-level structure of the mind, about purification and keeping the mind, about asceticism and the practice of hesychasm as an experience of increasing consciousness. It is concluded that in science, human consciousness is associated with the activity of the brain as a substratum of the psyche, which leads to its excessive simplification and reduction to the psyche of an animal. In contrast to this, in Christian anthropology, a person is not only a rational being, but also a moral one, so he needs to be aware of the meaning of his being. The definition of the concept of "virtual environment" and the results of scientific research on the influence of the virtual environment on human consciousness are given. The negative consequences of the uncontrolled use of virtual reality are described: 1) from the point of view of science, these are, in particular, screen addiction, cognitive impairment, dehumanization of human consciousness and transhumanism; 2) from the point of view of Christian anthropology: deprivation of unity, orderliness, integrity and freedom of the inner world of man; food for the emergence of passionate thoughts, obscuration of the mind, spiritual devastation. It is concluded that the development of virtual technologies and their practical use should be the subject of special attention from scientists, psychologists, physicians, and it is necessary to consider the influence of virtual reality on human consciousness not only from the standpoint of modern science, but also in the coordinate system of the Christian worldview.