What is virtual reality, and why is it important in the context of influencing behavior?

Virtual reality is a technology that creates immersive experiences by simulating environments and interactions. The significance of virtual reality lies in its ability to evoke a sense of 'presence,' making users feel like they are genuinely in the simulated environment. This presence can profoundly affect perceptions, emotions, and behaviors, blurring the line between the virtual and real. The implication is that experiences in virtual reality can have lasting effects on participants even after they leave the virtual world.

What does it mean to embody avatars in virtual reality, and why is it significant?

The concept of embodying avatars refers to the ability of individuals to inhabit digital representations of themselves or others in a virtual world. This is important because studies show that people can experience a sense of 'body transfer' into avatars that differ significantly from their physical selves. The implication is that embodying a helpful avatar, especially one with enhanced abilities, could potentially influence real-world behavior, such as increasing altruism.

What is meant by 'priming the superhero concept' in virtual reality, and why does it matter?

Priming the superhero concept refers to the unconscious activation of thoughts and associations related to superheroes when experiencing the power of flight in virtual reality. This concept is significant because it suggests that simply having the 'superpower' of flight can trigger associations with heroism and helping behavior. The implication is that virtual experiences can subtly influence our thoughts and motivations, leading to increased prosocial behavior.

How does virtual reality lead to a shift in self-perception, and why is this important?

The act of shifting self-perception relates to how virtual reality experiences can subtly alter how participants see themselves, reinforcing the idea of being someone who helps others. This alteration is important because it shows how virtual experiences can change our self-concept, leading to increased altruism in the real world. The implication is that virtual reality can be a tool to positively influence one's self-image and encourage helpful actions.

What is the difference between active involvement and observation in a virtual reality experience, and how does it impact behavior?

Active involvement versus observation refers to the difference in the sense of agency and responsibility felt by participants who actively flew through the virtual environment compared to those who passively rode in a helicopter. The importance of this concept lies in the fact that participants who were actively involved felt more responsible, leading to a greater sense of agency and subsequent helping behavior. The implication is that active participation in virtual experiences can enhance feelings of responsibility and promote prosocial behavior.

Person wearing VR headset soaring above city, embodying empathy.

Unlocking Empathy: Can Virtual Superpowers Make Us More Human?

Reese Marlowe in Mind & Education August 2025 • 5 min read.

"Explore how virtual reality's immersive experiences, particularly embodying superhero-like abilities, can boost prosocial behavior in the real world, fostering empathy and altruism."

Virtual reality (VR) is no longer just a gaming novelty; it's a powerful tool that can profoundly impact our perceptions, emotions, and even our behavior. The sense of 'presence' in a VR environment—the feeling of actually being there—can trigger deep psychological responses, blurring the lines between the virtual and the real. Experiences within VR can stay with participants long after the headset comes off, and can alter behaviorial aspects.

Recent research has focused on how we 'inhabit' our avatars, those digital representations of ourselves in the virtual world. Studies show that people can embody avatars that differ significantly from their physical selves, even experiencing a sense of 'body transfer' into avatars of a different gender or with non-human characteristics. This raises a fascinating question: can embodying a 'helpful' avatar, one with enhanced abilities, make us more altruistic in the real world?

Could giving participants the virtual power of flight and the unstated but implicit concepts that go along with such an enhanced ability (e.g., superpower) would lead participants subsequently to be more helpful. Specifically, we wanted to explore whether implicit but powerful priming of the concept 'superhero' would lead to subsequent helping behavior.

Flight and Altruism: How Superpowers in VR Translate to Real-World Kindness

Person wearing VR headset soaring above city, embodying empathy.

A compelling study explored this link by placing participants in a virtual city, some with the ability to fly like Superman and others as passengers in a helicopter. The study was structured as a two-by-two design, in which participants were given the power of flight (their arm movements were tracked to control their flight akin to Superman's flying ability) or rode as a passenger in a helicopter, and were assigned one of two tasks, either to help find a missing diabetic child in need of insulin or to tour a virtual city.

Interestingly, regardless of whether their task was to help find a missing child or simply tour the city, those who experienced the power of flight were significantly more likely to help the experimenter pick up spilled pens after the virtual experience. This suggests that simply having the 'superpower' of flight, irrespective of how it was used in the virtual world, could trigger greater helping behavior in the real world. The results indicate that having the "superpower" of flight leads to greater helping behavior in the real world, regardless of how participants used that power.

Priming the Superhero Concept: Flying in VR may unconsciously activate thoughts and associations related to superheroes. This could be due to the association of “super” activity concepts that are then linked to heroism and helping behavior.
Shifting Self-Perception: The VR experience may subtly alter participants’ self-concept, reinforcing the idea of themselves as someone who helps others.
Active Involvement vs. Observation: Participants who actively flew through the virtual environment (super-flight condition) may have felt more involved and responsible compared to those passively riding in the helicopter, leading to a greater sense of agency and subsequent helping behavior.

These findings highlight the potential of VR as a tool for fostering prosocial behavior. By providing immersive experiences that allow people to embody helpful avatars with extraordinary abilities, we can potentially prime empathy and encourage altruism in the real world. Recent studies have shown that playing prosocial video games leads to greater subsequent prosocial behavior in the real world. However, immersive virtual reality allows people to occupy avatars that are different from them in a perceptually realistic manner. We examine how occupying an avatar with the superhero ability to fly increases helping behavior.

The Future of VR: Training Super-Empaths?

While this study offers a fascinating glimpse into the potential of VR for promoting prosocial behavior, further research is needed to explore the underlying mechanisms and long-term effects. Future studies could investigate the impact of different types of superpowers, the duration of the virtual experience, and the role of specific superhero archetypes. As VR technology continues to evolve, we may find ourselves on the cusp of a new era in empathy training, where virtual experiences help us unlock our innate capacity for kindness and compassion.