Implications of attentional focus in virtual reality therapies for relaxation, meditation, and wellbeing

Abstract

ABSTRACT Stress is widely experienced. Relaxation practices, including mindfulness, meditation, yoga, and breathing exercises, are often used to combat stress, but can be difficult to maintain in everyday life. Virtual reality (VR) therapies appear to address stress in various contexts, and can be used to support relaxation techniques, including meditation, as they are immersive and can transport individuals to calming natural environments while limiting distractions. Many relaxation techniques invite individuals to focus their attention on their bodily sensations. This may be a challenge when using VR therapies as users are often disembodied in the VR. This article argues that inviting users to focus on bodily sensations in VR therapies may reduce their sense of presence or immersion in the virtual environment and create a conflict between focusing on the virtual world and the real world. An alternative strategy for relaxation and meditation in VR may be for users to have an outward and overtly audio-visual focus of attention on the features of the virtual environment, rather than bodily sensations. This could maintain sense of presence, immersion, and the unity of the experience, and make better use of VR technologies.