BbcTherapy that uses virtual technology is tested as a means of supporting adolescents anxiety and those who find it difficult to go to school.
Cardiff Youth Service, which is part of the Cardiff council education department, has helped test and develop a mobile application that uses augmented reality (AR) as an intervention for anxiety and social isolation.
The first results suggest that technology, which will be controlled in certain schools in Cardiff and Swansea, has resulted in “increased social connection” and a reduction in anxiety levels.
The children’s commissioner for Wales said that any intervention that could initiate young people and help their emotional well-being should be greeted.
AR is an interactive experience where your real environment is increased, added or improved using computer generated content.
Advisor Angela McMillan, who developed the AR therapy application, said that the idea came from support sessions with young people in the southern Wales valleys who had trouble going to school due to anxiety and social isolation.
“I’m really curious to know how we can use good technology,” she said.
“Instead of considering it as something we do by ourselves, how could we use the technology where we can then share this with the person next to us?”
The application uses game technology to allow a young person to design a flower and choose a structure to support its growth and weather conditions.
Users can then superimpose digital images on their physical environment using their device.
“What we have found is that young people used the devices to move in their physical space, but also interact with each other in a fun way and we know that the game is incredibly important for the development of the child,” said Ms. McMillan.
A group of young people supported by Cardiff Youth Service was the first to test the AR application.
Lili, 16, said: “It’s easy to use because you can separate it from yourself. It is easier to watch your emotions from an external point of view.
“I think it might be useful for many people. If someone didn’t really like to talk, it can be like a icebreaker to open conversations with their advisor.
“I think it would be particularly useful for people with social anxiety.”
Jonas, 15, said: “The thoughts of the experiences of the day come to my mind when I choose the different things.
“It’s creative and I have never seen something like that before.”
We hope that technology will help certain people, especially those who are NeurodivergentTo feel more comfortable using images to express what they feel.
“We are about to start pilots in the schools of Swansea and Cardiff. What we have seen so far in our initial pilots is an increase in social connection,” said McMillan.
“I think that a key element of this is that if we feel a feeling of belonging, it improves our well-being and our way of wanting to interact with the world.
“A by-product of this could be that young people want to return to education or attend in different ways.”
The Children’s Commissioner for Wales, Rocio Cifuentes, said that school attendance remained “a big problem” because the number of children missing more than 10% of their education had doubled from the pandemic.
“There are several complex reasons for this, but we know that emotional mental health and well-being play a role and school anxiety is common,” said Ms. Cifuentes.
“I think it is really important to consider any intervention based on evidence and which shows effective, but I also think that it is important to listen to children and young people and what they need.
“The world is evolving, technology is evolving and I think where schools can effectively use this technology to support the attendance of children and young people, that is to say welcome.”
The Cardiff council said that young people had “received a voice and had a precious contribution in the development of this tool which allows them to communicate using an approach with which they feel comfortable”.