The Role of Wearables & Technology in Mental Health: Review

The increasing prevalence of mental health disorders worldwide calls for innovative treatment approaches. This scholarly article delves into the rapidly expanding domain of wearable technology and digital mental health interventions (DMHIs) as potential countermeasures to the obstacles presented by the current state of mental health care. The study scrutinizes the incorporation of cutting-edge technologies such as virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) into mental health services, a move catalyzed significantly by the COVID-19 pandemic's influence on technology integration across life's various facets. Through an exhaustive narrative synthesis of the extant literature, this article offers a thorough examination of the efficacy, challenges, and future outlook of wearable and digital technologies in bolstering mental health support. It investigates pivotal themes including the effects of these technologies on accessibility, user engagement, privacy issues, and ethical concerns. Moreover, the review probes into these technologies' capacity to mitigate the mental health professional shortage and enhance care accessibility. The evidence indicates that although wearable technology and DMHIs present promising opportunities for transforming mental health care, they also introduce distinct challenges that demand meticulous consideration and strategic deployment. This manuscript contributes to the ongoing dialogue within cyberpsychology, furnishing insights and suggestions for forthcoming research and application in the technological integration into mental health services.