Enhancing Empathy through Real-Time Embodied Interaction with LLM-Powered Virtual Agents: A Human Study of Social Training in VR

We investigate the use of embodied conversational agents for experiential social training with a virtual reality environment inspired by Forum Theater and designed to raise awareness of workplace sexism. The system combines LLM-based open dialogue with explicit dialogue-state control and scripted interventions, allowing users to observe, discuss, and ultimately intervene in socially sensitive situations by embodying a victim of sexism. We report a human study with 32 participants. The results first show that the experience leads to a decrease in participants' hostile sexism and an increase of empathy toward victims fo sexism. Moreover, the experienced sense of body ownership in the virtual victim significantly predicts empathy. Despite the technical limitations of the tool, particularly regarding realism and conversational fluidity, participant feedback confirms the tool's pedagogical relevance, viewing it as a substantive instrument rather than a technical novelty. These findings highlight the importance of jointly considering embodiment, conversational guidance, and interaction control when designing LLM-based virtual agents for social training.