Social CommunicationImplementationAutism & Neurodivergent

Systematic review (JMIR 2025) of VR technology interventions for social skills in autistic children and adolescents - distinguishing immersive from non-immersive VR and flagging implementation considerations

Yang Y · 2025 · Journal of Medical Internet Research · Systematic Review 0 · Systematic review of VR interventions for autistic children and adolescents · DOI
Evidence certainty: High certainty
How this was rated

Systematic review methodology published in Journal of Medical Internet Research (peer-reviewed, established medical-internet-research journal). Recent (early 2025) coverage. Limitations: review notes that most included studies had small sample sizes, limiting statistical power; few large multicenter RCTs in the pool; heterogeneity of VR systems across studies.

Ratings use a simplified four-tier scheme (High, Moderate, Low, Very Low) informed by the GRADE working group. Learn more about how studies are rated.

A systematic review published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research synthesizing the evidence on VR technology interventions for improving social skills in autistic children and adolescents. Key distinctions emphasized: immersive VR interventions are more suitable for complex skill development, while non-immersive VR (lower cost, greater flexibility) holds potential for specific contexts. The review also flags implementation side effects including dizziness, eye fatigue, and sensory overload - particularly in immersive settings - which should be addressed in intervention design. Identifies a research gap: limited large multicenter RCTs and small per-study sample sizes.

Clinical bottom line

A 2025 JMIR systematic review of VR for autism social skills in children and adolescents. Companion to the Altın 2025 JADD review and the Ahn 2025 Hong Kong Journal of Occupational Therapy review - the three together represent the current systematic-review state of the autism+VR-social-skills evidence base. JMIR's venue strength is implementation-focused medical-tech research; this review's contribution is in distinguishing immersive vs non-immersive VR clinical implications and flagging side-effect considerations relevant to deployment.

Key findings

  • JMIR 2025 systematic review of VR technology interventions for social skills in autistic children and adolescents
  • Key clinical distinction: IMMERSIVE VR is more suitable for COMPLEX skill development; NON-IMMERSIVE VR (lower cost, greater flexibility) holds potential for SPECIFIC contexts. The immersive vs non-immersive choice is a meaningful clinical-design decision
  • Side-effect flag: VR technology may produce DIZZINESS, EYE FATIGUE, and SENSORY OVERLOAD - particularly in IMMERSIVE settings - which intervention designs must address
  • Research-gap finding: limited large multicenter RCTs in the autism+VR-social-skills literature; small per-study sample sizes limit power
  • Companion to Altın 2025 (JADD) and Ahn 2025 (Hong Kong Journal of Occupational Therapy) - three 2025 systematic reviews converging on the autism+VR social-skills evidence base from different venues
  • Published in JMIR (Journal of Medical Internet Research) - the leading peer-reviewed medical-internet-research venue, particularly strong for implementation and digital-health framings

Background

By 2025, autism+VR research had matured enough to merit systematic synthesis at the social-skills intervention level. The Yang 2025 JMIR review provides one of three near-contemporaneous 2025 systematic reviews on this topic (alongside Altın 2025 JADD and Ahn 2025 Hong Kong Journal of Occupational Therapy).

What they did and found

Systematic review of VR technology interventions for social skills in autistic children and adolescents, published in JMIR. Key distinctions: immersive VR suits complex skill development; non-immersive VR suits specific contexts with lower cost. Side effects flagged: dizziness, eye fatigue, sensory overload - particularly in immersive settings. Research gap: limited large multicenter RCTs, small per-study samples.

Why it matters

For implementation-focused clinical decision-making in autism+VR programs, this JMIR review’s distinctions (immersive vs non-immersive matched to skill complexity; deliberate side-effect management) are clinically actionable.

Limitations

Small sample sizes across included studies. Few large multicenter RCTs in the pool. Heterogeneity of VR systems.

Implications for practice

For clinicians designing or selecting VR-based social-skills programs for autistic children/adolescents, this review provides two clinically actionable distinctions: (1) match VR modality (immersive vs non-immersive) to the targeted skill complexity, and (2) deliberately plan for side-effect management (dizziness, eye fatigue, sensory overload). The research-gap framing - limited large multicenter RCTs - is useful when arguing for further investment in clinical-trial work in this population.

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Cite this study

If you reference this study in your work, the canonical citation formats are:

APA 7th
Yang, Y. (2025). Effectiveness of Virtual Reality Technology Interventions in Improving the Social Skills of Children and Adolescents With Autism: Systematic Review. Journal of Medical Internet Research. https://doi.org/10.2196/60845.
AMA 11th
Yang Y. Effectiveness of Virtual Reality Technology Interventions in Improving the Social Skills of Children and Adolescents With Autism: Systematic Review. Journal of Medical Internet Research. 2025. doi:10.2196/60845.
BibTeX
@article{yang2025,
  author = {Yang, Y.},
  title = {Effectiveness of Virtual Reality Technology Interventions in Improving the Social Skills of Children and Adolescents With Autism: Systematic Review},
  journal = {Journal of Medical Internet Research},
  year = {2025},
  doi = {10.2196/60845},
  url = {https://withvr.app/evidence/studies/yang-2025}
}
RIS
TY  - JOUR
AU  - Yang, Y.
TI  - Effectiveness of Virtual Reality Technology Interventions in Improving the Social Skills of Children and Adolescents With Autism: Systematic Review
JO  - Journal of Medical Internet Research
PY  - 2025
DO  - 10.2196/60845
UR  - https://withvr.app/evidence/studies/yang-2025
ER  -

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Funding & independence

Affiliations and funding sources reported in the published article (specific authors not extracted from rasterized ProQuest PDF available for this summary). Peer-reviewed in Journal of Medical Internet Research (JMIR Publications). No withVR BV involvement.

Last reviewed: 2026-05-17 Next review due: 2027-05-17 Reviewed by: Gareth Walkom