Reimagining Human Movement: The Impact of Extended Reality on Physical and Emotional Experience, Volume II

Extended Reality (XR), encompassing Virtual, Augmented, and Mixed Reality, has rapidly moved from novelty to a credible tool for shaping how humans learn, train, recover, and express movement. Volume I of this Research Topic attracted broad engagement across motor learning, neurorehabilitation, sport performance, and creative movement, confirming a vibrant interdisciplinary community working at the intersection of immersive technology and human physicality. It also exposed three areas where the evidence base remains thin: durable, long-term effects of XR-based movement training; applications across the full lifespan, in particular healthy aging and clinical populations; and inclusive, equitable design of immersive movement experiences. Volume II builds directly on this momentum, deepening the scientific conversation rather than restarting it, and broadening the contributor pool toward clinical, developmental, and applied settings.This Research Topic aims to consolidate and extend the empirical, theoretical, and methodological evidence on how XR transforms human movement and the emotional experience that accompanies it. The central problem is that, while short-term laboratory effects of XR on motor performance, embodiment, and engagement are increasingly well documented, we know far less about whether these effects translate into durable motor learning, real-world functional gains, and meaningful improvements in quality of life — particularly for older adults, neurological patients, children, and individuals with disabilities. Recent advances in adaptive XR systems, wearable motion capture, biometric feedback, exergaming platforms for aging populations, and validated outcome measures for immersive interventions now make it possible to address these questions with greater rigor. Volume II therefore invites contributions that go beyond proof-of-concept toward longitudinal designs, clinical trials, ecologically valid field studies, pedagogical implementations, and rigorous methodological work. By foregrounding lifespan applicability, clinical translation, and inclusive design, this Research Topic aims to move the field from “XR can change movement” to “XR changes movement, for whom, for how long, and under what conditions”.Areas of interest include, but are not limited to:• Long-term motor learning, retention, and transfer of training following XR-based interventions• Real-time adaptive XR systems for personalized movement feedback and skill acquisition• XR and exergaming for healthy aging, falls prevention, and cognitive-motor dual-task training• Immersive neurorehabilitation in stroke, Parkinson’s disease, and related neurological conditions• Psychomotor skill development in children, adolescents, and physical education settings• Sport performance training and motor skill acquisition in immersive environments• Multisensory integration, virtual embodiment, and body representation during movement• Motivational, affective, and adherence outcomes of XR exercise and rehabilitation programs• Inclusive XR design for older adults, individuals with disabilities, and neurodivergent populations• Methodological advances: validated outcome measures, motion-capture pipelines, and reporting standards for XR movement researchThis Research Topic welcomes Original Research, Systematic Reviews, Meta-Analyses, Clinical Trials, Registered Reports, Study Protocols, Methods, Brief Research Reports, Reviews, Mini Reviews, Perspectives, Opinions, and Hypothesis and Theory contributions. Topic editors: André Ramalho, Pedro Alexandre Duarte-Mendes, Jose M Cancela Carral Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/81741/reimagining-human-movement-the-impact-of-extended-reality-on-physical-and-emotional-experience-volume-ii