Assessing Self-disclosure Willingness in Metaverse-Based Structured Group Encounter

Abstract

Avatar-based communication in the metaverse offers a more extensive range of non-verbal information compared to traditional web-conferencing platforms. This study introduced a metaverse-based structured group encounter (M-SGE) and examined its effects on state anxiety, mood, and self-disclosure. The results indicated a significant reduction in state anxiety among participants following their involvement in M-SGE (p = .01, d = .90). Additionally, there was a marked increase in the participants’ willingness to self-disclose (p = .019, d = -.79). However, no significant differences in mood were observed before and after the M-SGE. The M-SGE offers the advantage of enabling communication through avatars for individuals perceiving face-to-face conversations as a challenge, regardless of time and place constraints. During the experiment, there were occasional instances of voice feedback and audio difficulties among participants, indicating the need for an improved communication environment.

Keywords: Kansei (affective) engineering, Group therapy, Avatar, Metaverse, Human-computer interaction

DOI: 10.54941/ahfe1005143