A systematic review examined virtual-reality-based mindfulness interventions and their effects on psychological and physiological health. Psychological benefits included improved anxiety, mindfulness, emotions, stress, and sleep-related arousal. Physiological effects involved changes in heart rate, heart rate variability, pain, blood pressure, cortisol, and galvanic skin resistance. Most studies were single sessions lasting 5 or 10 minutes, often in nature-based virtual environments. Attention regulation was identified as a primary mechanism. More research has been conducted in the last six years, especially by North American and South Korean authors. The review calls for more rigorous, true-experimental studies and longer interventions to assess long-term effects.
After performing a mentally draining self-control task (the Stroop test), basketball free-throw accuracy and football penalty-kick precision under pressure were better when participants then spent 15 minutes in a virtual-reality mindfulness breathing meditation with biofeedback, compared with a 15-minute rest break. In experiment 1 (18 basketball players) and experiment 2 (16 football players), the brief VR meditation counteracted the negative effects of ego depletion and enhanced motor-skill performance under pressure. The findings suggest that combining virtual reality, mindfulness, and biofeedback can help restore self-control resources and improve sports performance after mental fatigue.