Digitalisation and emotional virtues : opportunities and challenges of artificial intelligence and virtual reality

Poljak Lukek, Saša (author), Valenta, Tanja (author)

This article examines how digitalisation through artificial intelligence (AI) and vir tual reality (VR) is changing our emotional lives and moral development, with a focus on adolescence. Digitalisation is understood not only as a technological change, but also as a socio-cultural change that reshapes knowledge, relationships, and identi ty. AI provides tools to simulate empathy, manage emotional regulation and support adaptive coping; while VR creates immersive environments that promote empathy, perspective-taking, and social sensitivity. Adolescence is highlighted as a particularly sensitive phase for these interventions, characterised by neurocognitive plasticity and the formation of a moral identity. Digital technologies can offer the opportunity to cul tivate emotional virtues such as resilience, gratitude, and courage. At the same time, however, they harbour risks such as over-reliance on algorithms, emotional superfi ciality, and overwhelming virtual experiences. The article concludes that AI and VR should not replace human relationships but serve as complementary tools. A human centred approach is essential to ensure that these technologies promote emotional virtues and contribute to human well-being.

• Language: English
• Keywords: digitalization, emotional virtues, artificial intelligence, virtual relatiy, adolescence
• Work type: Article
• Typology: 1.02 - Review Article
• Organization: TEOF - Theological Faculty
• Publication status: Published
• Publication version: Version of Record
• Publication date: 16.04.2026
• Year: 2025
• Number of pages: Str. 1103-1123
• Numbering: [God.] 95, [br.] 5
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-181962
• UDC: 159.92‑053.6:004.8
• ISSN on article: 1848-9648
• DOI: 10.53745/bs.95.5.13
• COBISS.SI-ID: 275888387
• Publication date in RUL: 21.04.2026

Record is a part of a journal

• Title: Bogoslovska smotra
• Shortened title: Bogosl. smotra
• Publisher: Katolički bogoslovni fakultet Sveučilišta
• ISSN: 1848-9648
• COBISS.SI-ID: 8084570

Licences

• License: CC BY-NC 4.0, Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International
• Link: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
• Description: A creative commons license that bans commercial use, but the users don’t have to license their derivative works on the same terms.

Secondary language

• Language: Croatian
• Title: Digitalizacija i emocionalne vrline : prilike i izazovi umjetne inteligencije i virtualne stvarnosti

Abstract

Ovaj članak ispituje kako digitalizacija pomoću umjetne inteligencije (UI) i virtualne stvarnosti (VR) mijenja emocionalni život i moralni razvoj, s naglaskom na vrijeme adolescencije. Digitalizacija se ne shvaća samo kao tehnološka promjena nego i kao sociokulturna promjena koja preoblikuje znanje, odnose i identitet. UI pruža alate za simuliranje empatije, upravljanje regulacijom emocija i podršku adaptivnom suoča vanju, dok VR stvara imerzivna okruženja koja potiču empatiju, zauzimanje perspek tive i društvenu osjetljivost. Adolescencija se ističe kao posebno osjetljiva faza za te intervencije, karakterizirana neurokognitivnom plastičnošću i formiranjem moralnog identiteta. Digitalne tehnologije mogu ponuditi priliku za njegovanje emocionalnih vrlina poput otpornosti, zahvalnosti i hrabrosti. Međutim, istodobno nose i rizike, poput prevelikog oslanjanja na algoritme, emocionalne površnosti i preopterećenja virtualnim iskustvima. U članku se zaključuje da umjetna inteligencija i virtualna stvarnost ne bi trebale zamijeniti ljudske odnose, već služiti kao komplementarni alati. Pristup usmjeren na čovjeka ključan je kako bi se osiguralo da te tehnologije promiču emocionalne vrline i pridonose ljudskoj dobrobiti.

• Keywords: digitalizacija, čustvene vrline, umetna inteligenca, virtualna realnost, adolescenca