Metaverse-based virtual reality experience and endurance performance in sports economy: Mediating role of mental health and performance anxiety

Abstract

Metaverse sports arena is gaining popularity globally that empowers virtual reality sporting experience through digital avatars. The main objective of the current study is to explore the impact of the Metaverse-based virtual reality sporting experience on the endurance performance of young Chinese athletes, with the mediating role of their mental health condition and performance anxiety. The study's participants mainly included Chinese athletes, especially the sample group is an accurate depiction of young athletes using a convenience sampling approach. SEM-AMOS statistical software was used for the analysis and validation of the proposed relationships. The study findings statistically validate that mental health and performance anxiety fully mediate the direct associations between virtual reality sporting experiences and the endurance performance of young Chinese athletes. Interestingly, the mental health condition of the young Chinese athletes imposes a greater impact on their endurance performance, in contrast to the adverse effects of their performance anxiety. The outcomes of the present research guide young athletes on the opportunities to enhance their virtual reality sporting abilities and boost their endurance performance. Policymakers can also build systems to dissolve physical and geographical barriers, reduce performance anxiety, and sustain mental health in virtual reality sporting events through the metaverse.

A Review of Current Metaverse Applications as a Tool for Reshaping Human Behaviour in Health Communication

“…The mental health of young Chinese athletes has a stronger influence on their endurance performance than their performance anxiety. Findings from the current study advise young athletes on how to improve their VR sports skills and endurance performance [3]. There are a few different metaverses that can help us get to where we need to go sustainably in the transportation sector: testing algorithms for autonomous driving AI training, public transit safety and efficiency, traffic management, and the use of sharing economy apps [18].…”

“…The rise of the metaverse sports arena, which allows for a fully immersive virtual athletic experience through digital avatars, is a phenomenon that is attracting attention across the world [3]. The prevalence of ocular illnesses, including keratitis and dry eye, are strongly related to blink rate, a key physiological reaction in humans.…”

Mapping Metaverse Research: Identifying Future Research Areas Based on Bibliometric and Topic Modeling Techniques

“…For example, the high frequency of the keyword "virtual" highlights the strong emphasis on the virtual nature of the metaverse and its ability to create immersive digital environments [100]. This is further reinforced by the presence of the keyword "VR" (virtual reality), suggesting that VR technologies play a critical role in the development and exploration of metaverse environments [26,101,102]. Figure 9 depicts the growth dynamics of keywords in the metaverse field, using the keywords field of all selected articles.…”

Vision enhancement technologies, augmented reality and sports integrity considerations

“…The benefits will be endless in terms of protecting the health of athletes, but there also needs to be a considered approach in implementing such technologies to safeguard sports integrity. Sport and virtual reality are also becoming more intertwined (eg, Metaverse) 10. The virtual world holds new possibilities for enhancing training, sports competition and fan experience.…”