BBCThe therapy that uses virtual technology is being tested as an average of supporting adolescents with anxiety and those who struggle to attend school.
The Cardiff Youth Service, part of the Education Department of the Cardiff Council, has helped to test and develop a mobile application that uses augmented reality (AR) as anxiety and social isolation.
The initial findings suggest that technology, which was tested in some schools in Cardiff and Swansea, has resulted in an “increase in social connection” and reduced levels of anxiety.
The Children’s Commissioner for Wales said that any intervention that could involve young people and help their emotional well -being was to be welcome.
AR is an interactive experience where its real world environment increases, adds or improvement using computer generated content.
The Minister Angela McMillan, who developed the application of AR therapy, said that the idea came from sessions with young people in the valleys of southern Wales who had been fighting to attend school due to anxiety and social isolation.
“I’m very curious about how we can use technology forever,” he said.
“Instead of thinking about it as something we do for Ourelves, how could we use the technology where we can share that with the character that is by our side?”
The application uses game technology to allow a young person to design a flower and choose a structure to support their growth and climatic conditions.
Then, users can overlap digital images in their physical environment using their device.
“What we found was that young people were using the devices to move around their physical space, but also interacting with each other in a playful way and we know that the game is incredible to child development,” McMillan said.
A group of young people supported by the Cardiff Youth Service was the first to prove the AR application.
Lili, 16, said: “It’s easy to use because you can separate it from yourself. It is easier to look at your emotions from an outsid perspective.
“I think it could be useful for many people. If I didn’t really talk, then it can be like an ice switch to open conversations with your advisor.
“I think it would be particularly useful for people with social anxiety.”
Jonas, 15, said: “The thoughts of the day’s experiences are going through my mind while I am looking for different things.
“It’s creative and I’ve never had something like that before.”
Technology is expected to help certain people, partly those who are neurodergentes, to feel more comfortable using images to express how they feel.
“We are about to start some pilots in the Swansea and Cardiff schools. What we have so far in our initial pilots is an increase in social connection,” said McMillan.
“I think a key element of this is that if we feel a sense of belonging, that improves our well -being and the way we want to interact with the world.
“A byproduct of that could be that young people because returning to education or attending different ways.”
The Children’s Commissioner for Wales, Rocio Cifuentes, said that school attendance remained “a big problem” since the number of children missing more than 10% of their schooling had doubled from the pandemic.
“There are multiple complex reasons for this, but we know that emotional mental health and well -being play a role and school anxiety is common,” said Cifuentes.
“I think it is really important to consult any intervention that is based on evidence and that shows that it is effective, but I also think it is important to listen to children and young people and what they need.
“The world is evolving, technology is evolving and I think that schools can use that effective technology to support children and young people, that must be welcome.”
The Cardiff Council said the young people had “received a voice and had a valuable contribution in the development of this tool that provides a way that the issue communicates with an approach with which they feel comfortable.”
