The field of digital mental health has seen rapid growth as technology continues to revolutionize how emotional disorders are understood and managed. Emotional disorders—encompassing conditions like anxiety, depression, and related mood disturbances—are increasingly prevalent, imposing significant social and economic burdens worldwide. Recent advances in immersive virtual reality, augmented reality, and artificial intelligence are opening new frontiers for mental health practitioners, enabling innovative approaches for clinical assessment, real-time monitoring, personalized intervention, and the empowerment of both patients and professionals. Despite encouraging breakthroughs, these emerging technologies also pose complex methodological challenges and ethical considerations, fueling an ongoing debate about their efficacy, safety, and accessibility across diverse populations.

Current research highlights the significant potential for technologies such as immersive VR and AI-powered applications to deliver remote, adaptive, and engaging therapeutic experiences. Studies have demonstrated promising results, including increased patient engagement, improved emotional regulation, and greater accessibility to mental health care. Moreover, the integration of mobile health (mHealth) solutions reflects a paradigm shift, offering scalable and cost-effective tools for both preventive and therapeutic purposes. Nevertheless, knowledge gaps persist regarding optimal design frameworks, long-term effectiveness, integration with traditional care models, and implications for privacy, user safety, and digital equity.

This Research Topic aims to advance the understanding and application of immersive technologies and artificial intelligence in the diagnosis, treatment, and self-management of emotional disorders. Key objectives include exploring the efficacy of these interventions, determining best practices for their development, and addressing unresolved methodological and ethical questions. By drawing attention to the needs of both practitioners and end-users, this initiative seeks to foster interdisciplinary collaboration and evidence-based innovation in mental health care.

Submissions focusing on the design, deployment, and evaluation of immersive and intelligent technologies for emotional disorder management fall within the scope of this Research Topic. The scope is limited to digital interventions targeting emotional disorders, with an emphasis on their clinical, methodological, and ethical dimensions. To gather further insights in these areas, we welcome articles addressing, but not limited to, the following themes:

- Development and validation of VR, AR, and AI tools for assessing and treating anxiety, depression, somatoform, and anger-related disorders

- Evaluation of clinical outcomes and user experiences with immersive and AI-based interventions

- Studies on the effective integration of mHealth and digital tools into established mental health services

- Methodological approaches and challenges in designing, testing, and implementing novel technologies in emotional disorder care

- Ethical, privacy, and accessibility considerations in the adoption of digital mental health interventions

Authors

Frontiers in Computer Science

Human-Media Interaction