The Oxford Language Dictionary defines: “A virtual reality space in which users can interact with a computer-generated environment and other users is the metaverse”. “The “metaverse” is a collection of virtual spaces where you can create and explore with others who are not in the same physical space as you,” the social media giant said. Facebook recently changed its name to Meta and has in some ways created a buzz around the metaverse. This digital space is gradually becoming “a new reality” for the current generation of children. Kids today love to celebrate birthday parties on the metaverse where they can have fun and interact with their friends in virtual avatars. Instead of having a cozy little party in the living room with cakes and chips, the trend has shifted to virtual celebrations, thus making it the new reality. Marriages have also been solemnized in the metaverse! While many people see it as a better alternative to the material world, many others, psychologists, especially see it as a hassle. What is Metaverse? Is this a new concept that you don’t know about? If you ask someone about the metaverse, the most common answers will be “it deals with online games”, “online virtual worlds”, “3D worlds”. To understand the concept behind the metaverse and its craze, we need to observe and understand everything going on around us. For many of us, it is a new and confusing concept. Maybe that’s what’s creating more curiosity about it. “You’ll be able to hang out with friends, work, play, study, shop, be creative, etc. It’s not necessarily about spending more time online — it’s about taking advantage of the time to work that online spending makes more sense,” Facebook said of the metaverse.
The word metaverse was first used in Neal Stephenson’s 1992 cyberpunk dystopian novel Snow Crash. It is a compound word of the words meta and universe. Virtual reality is both a blessing and a curse for humanity. Virtual developers are trying to connect with every aspect of the human real world. Be it human interaction, marketing, education, virtual reality is penetrating everything. The Internet has made our lives easier. Nowadays no one can think of staying away from the internet. From booking a taxi to getting recommendations on movies you want to see more of, the Internet has interwoven human intelligence with human dependence and necessity. The younger generation is quick to grasp new things and technology attracts them the most.
A study conducted by the Pew Research Center in 2018 said, “young people believe that social media helps teens become more civic-minded and exposes them to more diversity – through the people they interact with or the perspectives they encounter.” The study found that 81% of participants felt social media connected them to what was going on in their friends’ lives, while about two-thirds said these platforms made them feel as if people who will support them through difficult times. It is not wrong to say that humanity survived the global Covid pandemic without disrupting economic and social activities only thanks to the internet. An evolution on the Internet, expanding the reach of the virtual world, is certainly a blessing.” Even if the Metaverse falls short of the fantastical visions that sci-fi writers embrace, it still has the potential to create trillions in value as a new computing platform or content medium. But in its full vision, the Metaverse becomes the gateway to most digital experiences, a key component The importance of all physical experiences and great labor background next,” said Matthew Ball, Managing Partner of EpyllionCo. Why do psychologists worry about that? What was its impact on mental health?” It was surreal. It was a nightmare,” said Nina Jane Patel, 43, recounting how she was verbally and sexually harassed on the VR platform Horizon Worlds, created by Meta, or formerly known as Facebook, in December 2021. “Within 60 seconds of joining — I was verbally and sexually harassed — 3–4 male avatars, essentially The version is male voice, but almost like gang-raping my avatar and taking pictures – when I tried to escape, they shouted – “don’t pretend you don’t like it” and “take the pictures yourself”, she wrote about horrifying incident on Medium. “Virtual reality has essentially been designed so that the mind and body cannot distinguish virtual/digital experiences from reality,” she said.Also read: Do you feel socially anxious when going out? Psychologists consider the metaverse worse than social media. “Today’s social media platforms are inherently dangerous for some children and teens. The immersion level of virtual reality could make those problems worse,” Albert “Skip” Rizzo, a psychologist and director for medical virtual reality at USC’s Institute for Creative Technologies, told CNBC. In September 2021, a Wall Street Journal report cited studies of Facebook over the past three years and revealed how Instagram influences its young user base. The study found that 32% of teenage girls revealed that Instagram made them feel worse about their body image. According to the report, more than 40% of Instagram users are under 22 years old.Also read: 2-minute mental health exercises to increase your productivityVirtual avatars across the metaverse can be modified to an individual’s liking and psychologists say this is a serious concern and could give rise to body image concerns in adolescents year. “Using 3D digital avatars in the metaverse also brings up another problem: Being able to modify your image to create a version of yourself that’s different from real life,” said Mitch Prinstein, Director. Real life can be “especially dangerous for teens.” Scientific Officer, American Psychological Association Psychologists say the idea of a virtual fictional identity can confuse identities of a person and there may be situations in which a person find it difficult to accept one’s true identity and personality.
