ReviewFrontiers in psychiatry2016
What Role Can Avatars Play in e-Mental Health Interventions? Exploring New Models of Client-Therapist Interaction.
Review in Frontiers in psychiatry, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 43 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
43 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 113 citations in OpenAlex.
- Remotely Delivered Interventions to Support Women With Symptoms of Anxiety in Pregnancy: Mixed Methods Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.Journal of medical Internet research · 2022Pooled it
- Efficacy of Self-Management Smartphone-Based Apps for Post-traumatic Stress Disorder Symptoms: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Frontiers in neuroscience · 2020Pooled it
- Maladaptive exercise: the hidden role of physical activity and sport professionals in the early detection of eating disorders.Journal of eating disorders · 2026Article
- Does artificiality matter? Comparing working memory performance for artificial and real faces.Psychological research · 2026Article
- Avatar-Mediated Telepsychotherapy in a Metaverse-Informed Virtual Environment: Qualitative Study of User Experiences and Design Requirements.Journal of medical Internet research · 2026Article
- Analyzing Generative AI and Machine Learning in Auto-Assessing Schizophrenia's Negative Symptoms.Schizophrenia bulletin · 2026Article
- Intelligent virtual agents in psychotherapy: a safety evaluation across high-risk mental health scenarios.Scientific reports · 2026Article
- Human-like, Animal-like, or Object-like? The Impact of LLM-Based Virtual Doctor Avatar Design on User Emotion, Physiology, and Experience.Behavioral sciences (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- A conversational agent as a virtual therapist for patients diagnosed with schizophrenia: A preliminary study.PloS one · 2026Article
- Avatars in Mental Health: Psychotherapists' Attitudes Towards Avatar Technology and Factors Influencing Adoption.European journal of investigation in health, psychology and education · 2025Article
- Effect of a Novel Somatic Avatar Training on Distress Tolerance Among Unhoused Men Recovering from Substance use Disorders: A Pilot Study.Journal of technology in behavioral science · 2025Article
- Women Empowered to Connect With Addiction Resources and Engage in Evidence-Based Treatment (WE-CARE)-an mHealth Application for the Universal Screening of Alcohol, Substance Use, Depression, and Anxiety: Usability and Feasibility Study.JMIR formative research · 2025Article
- Metaverse for mental health disorders: Opportunities and challenges.World journal of clinical cases · 2025Article
- Article
- GrooVR: an open access virtual reality drumming application to improve pro-sociality using synchronous movement.Frontiers in psychology · 2025Article
- Evaluating the Potential of Metaverse to Elicit Therapy-Related Emotions Among Individuals With Depression: Controlled Pilot Study of Cognitive and Emotional Responses.JMIR XR and spatial computing · 2025Article
- Formative research and design for a mobile health platform for oral cancer screening and detection (OC-DETECT)-a mixed methods study.Frontiers in digital health · 2025Article
- Emotional engagement and perceived empathy in live vs. automated psychological interviews.PloS one · 2025Article
- Relationship between client laughter and session outcomes in metaverse counseling.BMC psychology · 2024Article
- Sexual Interventions in the Metaverse: Attitudes Towards Novel Therapeutic Approaches, a Qualitative Study.Health expectations : an international journal of public participation in health care and health policy · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
In the burgeoning field of e-mental health interventions, avatars are increasingly being utilized to facilitate online communication between clients and therapists, and among peers. Avatars are digital self-representations, which enable individuals to interact with each other in computer-based virtual environments. In this narrative review, we examine the psychotherapeutic applications of avatars that have been investigated and trialed to date. Five key applications were identified (1) in the formation of online peer support communities; (2) replicating traditional modes of psychotherapy by using avatars as a vehicle to communicate within a wholly virtual environment; (3) using avatar technology to facilitate or augment face-to-face treatment; (4) as part of serious games; and (5) communication with an autonomous virtual therapist. Across these applications, avatars appeared to serve several functions conducive to treatment engagement by (1) facilitating the development of a virtual therapeutic alliance; (2) reducing communication barriers; (3) promoting treatment-seeking through anonymity; (4) promoting expression and exploration of client identity; and (5) enabling therapists to control and manipulate treatment stimuli. Further research into the feasibility and ethical implementation of avatar-based psychotherapies is required.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.