Sex doll for mental support
Sex dolls as mental support means they provide emotional comfort. Think of placing sex dolls in the living room for company, at the kitchen table as a conversation partner, or in the bedroom to cuddle up to at night. (1)
Just like having a pet such as a hamster or fish, which essentially cannot talk back, having this presence is worthwhile for some people. They need some company at home to ease feelings of loneliness.
In science, this is called the Tamagotchi effect: the effect in which people develop a relationship with inanimate objects, like Tamagotchis in the past. (2)
So sex dolls are used for more than just sex, for purposes that touch on a much deeper emotional level than you might initially think. (3)
Other purposes of sex dolls
Of course, it's not purely physical or purely emotional; combinations are also possible, in which a sex doll is used as a cuddle partner while sleeping, combining the physical and emotional aspects.
We previously divided the different groups that bought sex dolls and discussed their physical and emotional purposes.
A Reddit user mentioned: “I bought a doll so I had someone to cuddle and hold in bed; I fall asleep more easily, and it helped my mood after a difficult breakup.” (4)
Human loneliness
The older someone gets, the lonelier they become. (5)
Social isolation is normal and genuinely exists; it's understandable that people want a solution and refuse to accept it. Different methods include getting a pet (6); even an electric one (7) appears to have a positive effect on loneliness.
Artificial chatbots too (8) have a positive effect on loneliness.
How sex dolls alleviate loneliness
Given that even robots (9), or non-living beings, can alleviate loneliness, it is plausible that sex dolls, both now and as they continue to develop, can also genuinely alleviate and remedy loneliness. Technology can indeed be used to combat social loneliness.
References:
- Lievesley, R., Reynolds, R., & Harper, C. A. (2023). The ‘PERFECT’ partner: Understanding the lived experiences of men who own sex dolls. Sexuality & Culture, 27(1419–1441). Retrieved December 17, 2025, from https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12119-023-10071-5
- Wikipedia. (n.d.). Tamagotchi effect. Retrieved December 17, 2025, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tamagotchi_effect
- Aoki, S., & Kimura, T. (2021). A thing like a human? A mixed-methods study on sex doll usage. Journal/Publisher (PMC). Retrieved December 17, 2025, from https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10903549
- Reddit user contributions. (2023). Owners of sex dolls are less prone to sexual … Reddit. Retrieved December 17, 2025, from https://www.reddit.com/r/psychology/comments/11tri91/owners_of_sex_dolls_are_less_prone_to_sexual/
- Adams, J. E., Jones, J., & Smith, P. (2020). Loneliness: The present and the future. Ageing & Society, 48(4), 476–? Retrieved December 17, 2025, from https://academic.oup.com/ageing/article/48/4/476/5423796
- Kretzler, B., König, H.-H., & Hajek, A. (2022). Pet ownership, loneliness, and social isolation: A systematic review. Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, 57(10), 1935–1957. Retrieved December 17, 2025, from https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9272860/
- Tkatch, R., Wu, L., MacLeod, S., Ungar, R., Albright, L., Russell, D., Murphy, J., Schaeffer, J., & Yeh, C. S. (2021). Reducing loneliness and improving well-being among older adults with animatronic pets. Aging & Mental Health, 25(7), 1239–1245. Retrieved December 17, 2025, from https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32363903/
- Fu, Z., Yan, M., Han, X., Zhang, K., & Zhao, X. (2026). The effectiveness of artificial agents on loneliness reduction in older adults: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Archives of Gerontology and Geriatrics, 140, 106056. Retrieved December 17, 2025, from https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/41124893/
- Duffner, H., Susanty, A., et al. (2025). Wired for companionship: A meta-analysis on social robots filling the void of loneliness in later life. The Gerontologist, 65(12). Retrieved December 17, 2025, from https://academic.oup.com/gerontologist/article/65/12/gnaf219/8268528
