Metaverse Experts Warn That Body Image Issues Will Get Even Worse

Metaverse Experts Warn That Body Image Issues Will Get Even Worse

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Experts are warning that hyper-realistic 3D avatars in the virtual world could negatively impact the body image of young people in the real world.

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Metaverse Experts Warn That Body Image Issues Will Get Even Worse

As the hype surrounding the so-called metaverse continues to grow, experts are warning that hyper-realistic 3D avatars in the virtual world could negatively impact the body image of young people in the real world. While Meta’s vision for the metaverse is most widely talked about, a number of other tech companies are also working on their own fascinating virtual environments where people could interact with each other through realistic 3D avatars. Most notable among them is Microsoft, whose CEO Satyla Nadella has announced plans to build an “enterprise metaverse” that would meld the real and virtual worlds.

Another major company that is also working on creating similar digital environments is graphics chip-maker NVIDIA, which is building an ‘Omniverse’ platform that it says would create simulations of real-world buildings and factories. Video game platform Roblox is also betting big on 3D digital environments and is designing a metaverse that will cater to the needs of gamers. Snap Inc. also launched 3D Bitmojis for Snapchat earlier this year as a precursor to its own metaverse. Chinese tech giant Tencent also reportedly registered many metaverse-related trademarks earlier this year as well.

With a whole array of companies from different spheres of the technology sector working on their own interpretations of the metaverse, experts are now warning that hyper-realistic avatars may harm the body image of young people. A study published earlier this year by Jennifer Ogle of Colorado State University and Juyeon Park of Seoul National University showed that young women almost always suffered from self-esteem issues after seeing their realistic avatars despite attending a body positivity program before creating those virtual models of themselves. The study recruited eighteen women between the ages of 18 and 21 who admitted to be already suffering from some body image issues.

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Hyper-Realistic 3D Avatars Might Increase Body Dysmorphia

More recently, MIT Technology Review discussed the issue with Noelle Martin, a legal researcher at the University of Western Australia and co-author of a forthcoming paper on Meta’s metaverse. According to Martin, if people are able to design their hyper-realistic virtual avatars, it could create “a concerning potential to impact body dysmorphia, selfie dysmorphia, and eating disorders.” Martin went on to explain that these simulated 3D environments would likely result in “unrealistic and unattainable standards of beauty, particularly for young girls.”

Talking to Technology Review, Meta spokesperson Eloise Quintanilla explained that the company is taking all necessary steps to avoid any potential problems with its metaverse going forward. According to Quintanilla, the company is actively working on this very issue and trying to find how much avatar customization would hit the sweet spot between realism and “a positive and safe experience” for all metaverse users.

Link Source : https://screenrant.com/metaverse-body-image-issues-negative-effects-experts-warning/

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