Free remote registration is open to all. Join the workshop live on October 6, 2026, from 2:00–5:00 PM CEST (8:00–11:00 AM EDT).
Register for Remote Attendance → View Program →We’re opening a small number of non-archival lightning talk slots for early-career researchers and practitioners working across XR and behavioral health. We welcome:
No paper required. Talks are 5–8 minutes, followed by ~2 minutes for feedback and discussion. Priority may be given to in-person participants.
Deadline: September 9, 2026 (AoE)
Notification: September 16, 2026
We’re excited to welcome Prof. Michael J. Proulx (Meta Reality Labs Research / University of Bath) as the keynote speaker for BehavXR’26.
Michael is a Research Scientist at Meta Reality Labs Research and Professor of Cognition and Technology at the University of Bath, with research spanning cognitive psychology, behavioral AI, emerging technology, and human behavior.
Extended reality (XR) is increasingly used in behavioral health for assessment, intervention, behavior change, and skill development. Three research communities are advancing this work in parallel: clinical and behavioral scientists using XR cue reactivity paradigms to measure psychophysiological responses; XR and HCI researchers designing embodied systems to support health behavior change; and participatory designers co-creating XR tools with clinical and youth populations.
These communities rarely share a venue. BehavXR'26 brings them together for the first time at ISMAR, with a methodology-forward agenda to develop shared standards, language, and design frameworks for XR behavioral health research. The workshop is structured around three pillars:
Signal integration, synchronization, and reporting standards for cue reactivity and psychophysiological assessment in XR.
Avatar-based interventions, future-self continuity, and game-driven XR experiences that support measurable behavior change.
Participatory design methods, ethical frameworks, and ecological validity for XR tools developed with clinical and youth populations.
BehavXR'26 is a 3-hour hybrid workshop conducted primarily in person in Bari, Italy, with remote participation supported. The program will combine a keynote, accepted paper presentations, lightning talks, and cross-sector discussion around XR for behavioral health.
The final program will feature Prof. Michael J. Proulx’s keynote, accepted paper presentations, lightning talks, an interactive community session, a featured industry talk, and a cross-sector discussion panel. View the preliminary program →
ISMAR 2026 Adjunct Proceedings via IEEE Xplore.