The Ethical Considerations of Virtual Reality

"Never has a medium been so potent for beauty and so vulnerable to creepiness.  

Virtual reality will test us. It will amplify our character more than other media ever have."

VR pioneer Jaron Lanier

Source: https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2018/05/realitys-end/556877/

                   Four Ethical Concerns About Virtual Reality                                         

First, VR poses potential mental health risks, including Depersonalization/Derealization Disorder*

Depersonalization-derealization disorder occurs when you persistently or repeatedly have the feeling that you're observing yourself from outside your body or you have a sense that things around you aren't real, or both. Feelings of depersonalization and derealization can be very disturbing and may feel like you're living in a dream.

Second, VR technology raises serious concerns related to personal neglect of users’ own actual bodies and real physical environments 

Third, VR technologies may be used to record personal data which could be deployed in ways that threaten personal privacy and present a danger related to manipulation of users’ beliefs, emotions, and behaviors 

Fourth, there are other moral and social risks associated with the way VR blurs the distinction between the real and illusory

Source: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11948-017-9979-y