HCI considerations in Designing a Second Life Virtual Therapeutic Community for the Support & Treatment of People with Borderline Personality Disorder

TL;DR

This research explores designing a virtual therapeutic community in Second Life for people with Borderline Personality Disorder, focusing on user acceptance, support needs, and interdisciplinary design considerations.

Contribution

It presents initial requirements and acceptance factors for a virtual BPD support community, extending prior work on virtual mental health interventions.

Findings

Identified user support needs for BPD in virtual environments

Assessed acceptance levels of virtual therapeutic communities

Developed a framework applicable to other mental health conditions

Abstract

This paper aims to present the current position of the ongoing research into developing the requirements and acceptance of a virtual therapeutic community in Second Life, specifically for people with Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD). The research has identified this particular user group given that people with BPD often require high levels of support, which can result in emergency hospital admissions, in addition to the significant economic cost of treating people BPD in relation to other mental illnesses (NCCMH, 2009). The research is also intended to be used as framework for other mental health conditions. This work is a continuation of the research carried out in exploring the potential of virtual therapeutic communities based on existing models of therapeutic hospitals as well as virtual treatments and support, in treating people with BPD. An interdisciplinary approach to this research features collaboration from areas in HCI, forensic psychology and psychotherapy.