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Presence of Virtual Characters with Specific Traits Can Reduce Physical Anxiety Responses
A recent collaborative study by the Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics and the Chair of Human-Computer Interaction at the University of Würzburg shows that virtual characters can significantly alleviate anxiety responses—provided they are perceived as socially relevant. In addition to a same-gender virtual figure, even a simple wooden mannequin had a calming effect when perceived as an empathetic partner. The results, published in the journal Computers in Human Behavior, open new perspectives for the targeted use of virtual characters in digital health applications.
Würzburg. You are not alone. Whether in humans or animals, proximity to conspecifics can have a calming effect in anxiety-inducing situations. This mechanism, known as social buffering, was originally discovered in animal research. Even zebrafish show less fear behavior in the presence of conspecifics (Faustino et al., Scientific Reports, 2017). The size of the visible group doesn't matter—even visual contact with individuals in neighboring tanks can mitigate threatening stimuli, in this case triggered by alarm substances in the water. Inspired by this simple but compelling setup, Prof. Dr. Grit Hein, Professor of Translational Neuroscience at the University Hospital of Würzburg (UKW), investigated whether the effect of mere social presence is also measurable in humans—first in the real world, and in a recent study, in virtual environments.
“Social interactions today often occur virtually, but the effects of social buffering in virtual settings are still largely unknown,” explains Grit Hein.
Presence of a Conspecific Can Reduce Autonomic Responses to Aversive Stimuli
The initial real-world study setting, previously used in earlier studies (Qi Y et al., Proc Biol Sci, 2020 and Qi Y et al., Translational Psychiatry, 2021), involved participants in a soundproof booth exposed to fear-inducing screams, both alone and in the presence of another real person. In addition to emotional evaluations, researchers also measured skin conductance, an objective indicator of autonomic anxiety—activity in the peripheral nervous system—which cannot be consciously controlled and is often used in lie detection. When exposed to aversive stimuli—unpleasant, painful, fear- or stress-inducing—our sweat glands activate, increasing skin moisture and conductivity, leading to a rise in skin conductance.
Results showed that the mere presence of another person could reduce this autonomic response. However, individuals with higher social anxiety benefitted less from the presence of a real person. The virtual world, however, yielded different results.
Anxiety-Inducing Sounds in the Presence of Virtual Characters with Varying Human-Likeness
To replicate the real-world setting virtually, Hein collaborated with Prof. Dr. Marc Erich Latoschik’s team at the Chair of Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) at the Center for Artificial Intelligence and Data Science (CAIDAS), Julius-Maximilians-University Würzburg (JMU). A virtual replica of the soundproof booth was created, and full-body scans of male and female actors from the earlier studies were digitized to be used in VR. Remarkably, the social buffering effect also appeared in virtual reality—even for more socially anxious individuals.
“Puzzling and interesting,” said Grit Hein. “Participants knew the characters were virtual, perceived only through the VR headset, and yet they had a calming effect, as shown by a reduced skin conductance level.”
Avoiding the “Uncanny Valley” Effect
The research team asked: How human-like must a virtual character be to provide a calming effect without provoking discomfort? Existing studies, including from the Würzburg HCI group, describe the Uncanny Valley—when artificial beings appear too human-like but not quite perfect, leading to implausibility, cognitive dissonance, or even fear.
Thus, in addition to the male and female virtual characters, the study included two less anthropomorphic figures: a simple, skin-colored, genderless wooden mannequin and a point cloud with rough human contours. Participants were also exposed to the screams without any virtual figure.
Social Buffering Requires Social Framing: Female Character and Wooden Figure Show Calming Effect When Perceived as Social Partners
To the research team’s surprise, "Woody"—the nickname for the wooden figure—demonstrated a significant social buffering effect comparable to that of the virtual woman. The male character, however, had the opposite effect. The point cloud showed no buffering, resembling the results of an empty room. This, according to Hein, is a key finding: it shows that the buffering effect is not merely due to distraction.
But crucially, the humanoid wooden figure was only effective when given social meaning. Participants were told that the character could receive an alert signal if they felt unwell. Without this “social framing,” Woody had no calming effect.
“A humanoid character can reduce stress and anxiety—as long as it has social significance,” summarizes Grit Hein. The findings, now published in Computers in Human Behavior, may be particularly relevant for psychiatric patient populations, whose treatment could be supplemented by virtual therapies. The next step is identifying which character works best for which mental health condition.
Knowing there’s an emergency exit or panic button isn't enough—it’s too abstract. “I need a counterpart I can see as a ‘safety cue,’ one that doesn’t judge me—like Woody,” Hein interprets the findings. The male character did not fulfill this role for the exclusively female participants, despite being introduced similarly to the others.
“Our biggest insight was that anxiety response is not determined by how visually detailed a virtual character is, but whether we perceive them as a real social partner,” says Dr. Martin Weiß, postdoctoral researcher in Translational Social Neuroscience at UKW and co-first author of the study with Philipp Krop.
“Even a stylized figure can effectively buffer fear reactions—if we assign them this role,” adds Philipp Krop, researcher at CAIDAS. “This makes virtual interventions like VR agents or AI-based solutions far more accessible and affordable.”
Relevance for Medical and Societal Apps
This cooperative research between the Würzburg Center for Mental Health (ZEP) and the Chair of Human-Computer Interaction is especially significant for the booming market of medical apps, which often employ virtual characters and are still largely based on trial and error. Who are we most likely to follow on the path to a healthy lifestyle? Who motivates us to do daily exercises? Who do we confide our fears and worries in?
“Our kind of research provides empirical grounding for these applications,” says Grit Hein. The foundation is now laid to enhance virtual characters with additional features in future experiments—such as the ability to send social signals.
Prof. Dr. Grit Hein, Hein_G@ukw.de
Martin Weiß, Philipp Krop, Lukas Treml, Elias Neuser, Mario Botsch, Martin J. Herrmann, Marc Erich Latoschik, Grit Hein. The buffering of autonomic fear responses is moderated by the characteristics of a virtual character. Computers in Human Behavior. Volume 168, 2025, 108657, ISSN 0747-5632,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2025.108657.
https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rspb.2019.2241 Previous study
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41398-021-01761-5 Previous study
https://www.nature.com/articles/srep44329 zebrafish-study
The embodiments of the virtual figure used in the experiment. Above views of empty space, below from ...
White, Krop et al, Computers in Human Behaviour, 2025.
When the wooden figure Woody was given a social meaning, it had a similarly significant social buffe ...
White, Krop et al, Computers in Human Behaviour, 2025.
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The embodiments of the virtual figure used in the experiment. Above views of empty space, below from ...
White, Krop et al, Computers in Human Behaviour, 2025.
When the wooden figure Woody was given a social meaning, it had a similarly significant social buffe ...
White, Krop et al, Computers in Human Behaviour, 2025.
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