Co-designing a Preliminary Repository of Augmented Reality Concepts for Real-Time Emotion Regulation

2026-06-23

AI Summary

This study addresses the lack of user-centered, clinically informed, and reusable design resources for augmented reality (AR)-based emotion regulation interventions, which currently hinders seamless support for real-time emotional management in daily life. Through a two-phase participatory design process, the research systematically integrates end-user needs with clinical feasibility by first eliciting design ideas from individuals with anxiety tendencies using the Nominal Group Technique, followed by expert-driven clustering and evaluation of these concepts. The resulting structured repository comprises 106 reusable AR intervention design concepts organized into eight thematic clusters. This resource lays a foundational framework for developing practical, scalable AR tools that effectively support everyday emotion regulation grounded in both user experience and clinical knowledge.

Abstract

Augmented Reality (AR) can be a positive therapeutic approach to support mental health and emotion regulation. Although AR techniques for therapeutic support exist, there is no user-centered, expert-informed understanding of how real-time AR designs can support people in emotional distress without disengaging them from their ongoing activities. This lack of reusable design resources hinders the adoption of AR for mental health support. This paper addresses this gap by introducing a co-designed collection of AR interventions describing how this technique can support real-time emotion regulation. The repository was created following a two-phase participatory design process. Phase 1 recruited 40 anxiety-prone individuals and used the Nominal Group Technique to list ideas on how AR affordances could support emotion regulation. Phase 2 recruited 10 mental health professionals to organize these ideas into thematic clusters and assess their clinical feasibility. The resulting AR design repository, grounded in user perspective and clinical expertise, identifies eight thematic clusters and 106 design ideas. This work represents a first step towards the development of seamless real-time AR interventions for mental health.

Problem

• Augmented Reality
• Emotion Regulation
• Mental Health
• Real-Time Intervention
• Design Repository

Innovation

• Augmented Reality
• Emotion Regulation
• Participatory Design
• Mental Health
• Design Repository