Virtual study rooms offer lonely students companionship

CHONGQING — Even though it's past 10 pm, a video meeting between a group of students is still going strong. For these students, who are devoted to studying, the virtual meeting is akin to spending time in the library.

Virtual study rooms are becoming an increasingly popular quiet space to work alongside other students. The COVID-19 epidemic cemented its popularity when social distancing measures came into force.

One video titled "I'm studying with 100,000 people" on Bilibili, a video-sharing platform targeting young people, has over 880,000 views.

The eight-hour video, posted early last month, includes footage from the study rooms of many top Chinese universities, including Tsinghua and Xiamen universities, and has become a welcome space for those in pursuit of an academic atmosphere.

"Initially, I was just looking for a partner to prepare for the IELTS exam together. I never expected it to be so popular," said Yue Yetu, who started an online study stream. "I was amazed that over 150 people were simultaneously online ahead of the Chinese national postgraduate entrance examination last December."

Yue said participants include teenagers and adults, most of whom are preparing for upcoming exams. Motivated by the interest, Yue has kept the virtual study room running even after passing her exam. "They don't have to be visible when they're in the room, but many users still prefer to turn on their webcams because it reminds them not to get distracted," Yue said.

She also set up a chat group, where dozens of members share their learning process, as well as their ups and downs in life.

"I got a lot of support from it, and it was very touching," said Chen Yihan, one of the room's users.

Wang Lingli, a counselor at the First People's Hospital of Chongqing Liangjiang New Area, explained that the craze for online studying can be attributed to a psychological concept known as "social facilitation", which explains the need for the presence of others to improve a person's performance.

"Humans are social beings. People may feel anxious and experience self-doubt due to the huge pressure of studying alone for exams. Companionship and support from others going through a similar experience help relieve loneliness and overcome negative emotions," Wang said.

For all the benefits online study rooms come with, there are also drawbacks.

"Online meetings are accessible to everyone, so there is the chance someone will send insulting messages or behave badly," Yue said, adding she has encrypted the virtual meeting room to reduce the chances of such behavior occurring.

Other people have followed suit, setting up paid rooms with games and barely supervised chat services. "I paid 50 yuan ($7) for a so-called supervision service, only to find that no one cared what you were doing," complained one user. "Such things need to be regulated."

For Yue, her virtual study room has far-reaching significance. Two siblings showed up in her room one winter day reading in dingy light.

"They were both wearing fingerless gloves and I could even see their breath, which showed how cold it was there," she said.

She decided to keep the room running for 24 hours.

"They made me realize the importance of creating this kind of online space," she said.

Xinhua