More than half of U.S. adults fear that the metaverse will lead them to neglect reality, and therefore prefer activitations that include real-world components, such as augmented reality and virtual reality, according to new findings from The Harris Poll.
Interest in technologies that bridge the digital and physical realm far outweighs that in more abstract, digital-only formats, such as NFTs and cryptocurrency, the poll found.
In January and February, The Harris Poll conducted two surveys on consumers’ perception toward the metaverse. One survey fielded data from 1,060 U.S. adults ages 18 and older, and the other from 1,007 U.S. adults ages 18 to 54. Respondents answered questions pertaining to their awareness of specific metaverse technologies, their concerns about the space and how they felt about brands offering metaverse experiences. The surveys also asked respondents if they foresaw one company owning the entire metaverse.
More than half—52%—of respondents ages 18 to 54 who are aware of the metaverse fear that the space and its technologies will lead to the neglect of their physical surroundings. This cohort particularly fears that they could lose pre-existing relationships and the ability to form new ones.
Salesforce hit on this notion in its Super Bowl and Winter Olympics commercial, in which Matthew McConaughey urged viewers to focus on cultivating the earth over new frontiers like the metaverse. Backlash over the negative environmental impact of NFTs and cryptocurrency has also contributed to mass skepticism of Web3.