How to Care for Victims of Virtual Assault

Source: Image by Steve Bidmead from Pixabay

Those who have prosecuted sexual assault for years are familiar with the value of services and support after victimization. But what about virtual victimization involving assault by an anonymous avatar? Fortunately, victim services are viable and increasingly visible even on virtual platforms.

Virtual Victimization

Metaverse platforms afford individuals a space to interact through realistic avatars or alter egos. Although people use such platforms both personally and professionally, in some cases, virtual interaction is anything but professional. And deviant behavior in virtual space can cause real trauma to victims.

London-based female researcher Nina Jane Patel shared her experience on Medium. She was “verbally and sexually harassed” within 60 seconds of joining Facebook/ Meta’s Venues by three to four male avatars, with male voices, who “virtually gang raped” her avatar and took photos. When she tried to escape, they yelled, “don’t pretend you didn’t love it,” and “go rub yourself off to the photo.”ⁱ

What was the response to sharing her story? Patel described the wide variety of comments on her post. They ranged from “don’t choose a female avatar, it’s a simple fix,” “don’t be stupid, it wasn’t real,” and “avatars don’t have lower bodies to assault” to compassionate sentiments such as “I’m truly sorry you had to experience this,” and “this must stop.”

Following reports of sexual assaults by Patel and others, Meta rolled out a “personal boundary” tool. According to Horizon Worlds Vice President Vivek Sharma, the tool keeps avatars four feet away from one another within “Horizon Worlds” and “Horizon Venues” to provide users with more “personal space” to avoid undesired interaction.ⁱⁱ

Installing virtual personal boundary tools is a step in the right direction. But addressing the trauma of virtual victims—which can be exacerbated by downplaying the significance of the assault, is another important issue to address.

Virtual Victim Assistance

Care providers have already entered the virtual space. Brenda Wiederhold, a cyberpsychologist and co-founder of the Virtual Reality Medical Center in La Jolla, California, uses virtual reality immersion to help her clients overcome real-life trauma or fears. As reported by Refinery29, Wiederhold explained, “If we're inhabiting an avatar, it becomes who we are for that moment. I could be an 80-year-old man, and if I'm in an avatar that’s a 20-year-old woman's body, part of my brain [psychologically] becomes that person.”

Although the use of virtual reality to address offline emotions is different than directly addressing online virtual assault, the concepts may easily translate, addressing virtual trauma with virtual therapy designed to help clients overcome the negative experience.

Mi‐ran Lee and Chiyoung Cha (2021) investigated the value of using virtual reality for survivors of sexual violence^.iiiThey tested the effectiveness of a mobile virtual intervention called Sister, I will tell you! to help young women who have been subjected to sexual violence in South Korea. The four-week virtual mobile virtual intervention included reflective writing and mindfulness meditation and testing its efficacy as compared with audio-guided mindfulness meditation.

They found that of 34 female survivors randomly assigned to one group or another, participants experienced significant improvements in perceived support, suicidal ideation, and the negative impact of sexual violence. They concluded that the intervention demonstrated potential for helping young women heal after experiencing sexual violence and that even a simple mobile audio intervention that did not incorporate human interaction could benefit survivors of sexual violence.

Many people who have been traumatized in virtual space benefit from in-person therapy and counseling. But for those who prefer virtual platforms due to personal preference or remote location, assistance is also available. Just as trauma can take place in virtual reality, healing can as well.

To find a therapist near you, visit the Psychology Today Therapy Directory.