Investigating "Another Me" digital twin technology to support the development of human relationships: An exploratory...

Area of Science:

• Psychology
• Human-Computer Interaction
• Digital Health

Background:

• Social anxiety disorder (SAD) significantly impacts education, employment, and relationships.
• Exposure therapy is a common SAD treatment but can cause psychological distress due to interactions with strangers.
• Human digital twin avatar technology presents a novel approach to mitigate this burden.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate if "Another Me" digital twin technology can reduce the psychological burden during first-time face-to-face interactions for individuals with SAD.
• To explore the impact of simulated avatar interactions on anxiety levels and physiological responses.

Main Methods:

• An exploratory, randomized, open-label, controlled study involving 30 participants with self-reported nervousness in social interactions.
• Intervention group: Viewed a simulated conversation between their digital twin and the interlocutor's twin, then engaged in an online conversation.
• Control group: Viewed a generic avatar conversation, then engaged in an online conversation.

Main Results:

• The primary endpoint (heart rate change) was not statistically significant between groups.
• Exploratory analysis: Intervention group showed decreased heart rate post-simulation and stable heart rate during conversation, unlike the control group.
• Intervention group reported lower anxiety and higher willingness to complete the conversation.

Conclusions:

• "Another Me" digital twin technology shows preliminary potential in reducing anxiety and improving conversational engagement in individuals with SAD.
• Findings are hypothesis-generating, suggesting further research with robust physiological monitoring is needed.
• This technology may offer a less burdensome alternative for exposure therapy in social anxiety treatment.