Transforming Social Skills Training: The Role of the Metaverse in the Health Sector

This conference examines the transformative role of the metaverse in social skills training within the healthcare sector. It explores how immersive technologies—particularly virtual reality–based metaverse environments—can enhance the acquisition and consolidation of key interpersonal competencies such as effective communication, empathy, teamwork, and conflict management, which are essential for high-quality clinical practice. The presentation provides a conceptual overview of the metaverse as an advanced learning environment and analyzes its pedagogical potential compared to traditional training approaches. Drawing on the experience of the Cármides Metaverse developed at the University of Seville, the conference illustrates how simulated, avatar-mediated scenarios allow healthcare professionals and students to practice complex interpersonal situations in a safe, controlled, and repeatable context, while receiving immediate feedback to facilitate learning and transfer to real-world settings. Preliminary evidence presented highlights improvements in learning speed, professional confidence, and consistency of performance across participants. At the same time, the conference critically addresses the main challenges associated with the implementation of metaverse-based training in healthcare, including technological adaptation, resource demands, ethical considerations, and data protection issues. Overall, the conference argues that the metaverse represents a promising and innovative tool for social skills training in the health sector, provided that its integration is guided by sound pedagogical principles and complemented—rather than replaced—by direct human interaction.