Journal For Virtual Worlds Research (Texas Digital Library - TDL E-Journals)
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Consuming Code: Use-Value, Exchange-Value, and the Role of Virtual Goods in Second Life
No full textIn recent years, there has been significant growth in consumption of commodities in virtual social worlds, such as Second Life, and in the economies that arise from this practice. While these economic systems have been acknowledged and studied, there remains relatively little understanding of the reasons why individuals choose to purchase such goods, despite the fact that reasons for consumption are strong enough to drive a virtual goods industry with annual profits in the millions of dollars. Virtual goods, the author argues, meet no immediate needs for avatars or individuals and, as such, are purchased based exclusively on their exchange- and symbolic-values. Due to the graphical nature of Second Life and the consequent visibility of commodities within the environment, these reasons for purchasing virtual goods are explored in terms of their roles for users, and especially in terms of their potential for expressing wealth, power, status, individuality, and belonging. As such, this paper considers the roles of consumption in a way that relies on and further illuminates theories of consumption and value with respect to virtual environments and commodities
On the Relationship between My Avatar and Myself
No full textWhat is the relationship between avatars and the people they represent in terms of appearance and behavior? In this paper, we hypothesize that people (balancing motives of self-verification and self-enhancement) customize the image of their avatars to bear similarity to their real selves, but with moderate enhancements. We also hypothesize that virtual-world behavior (due to deindividuation in computer-mediated communication environments) is less restrained by normal inhibitions than real-world behavior. Lastly, we hypothesize that people with more attractive avatars than their real selves will be somewhat more confident and extraverted in virtual worlds than they are in the real world.
We examine these issues using data collected from Second Life residents using an in-world intercept method that involved recruiting respondent
Toward a Definition of
No full textThis is a brief essay, we call "think-pieces", designed to stimulate a discussion on a particular topic. The topic for this series of essays is "defining virtual worlds"
Avatars Are For Real: Virtual Communities and Public Spheres
No full textUsing the historical example of Tokugawa Japan (1603-1867), we point out how artistic circles provided
Metaverse: A New Dimension?
No full textThis is a brief essay, we call "think-pieces", designed to stimulate a discussion on a particular topic. For this series of essays we propose the following question:
"Consumer behavior in virtual worlds, is it really any different to the real world, or is it simply a case of \u27old wine in a new bottle\u27?
A Typology of Virtual Worlds: Historical Overview and Future Directions
No full textVirtual worlds constitute a growing space for collaborative play, learning, work, and e-commerce. To promote study of this emerging realm of activity, we suggest a typology adapted from C. Porte
How Open Source Software Will Affect Virtual Worlds
No full textEssay produced for the Journal of Virtual Worlds Research
Ugly Duckling by Day, Super Model by Night: The Influence of Body Image on the Use of Virtual Worlds
No full textThe use and importance of virtual worlds is growing worldwide but little is known about what influences participants to use them. The current study extends the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB), using sociometer theory, to explore influences on the use of virtual worlds. It is hypothesized that perceptions of body image are negatively related to the desire to become someone else, and that this and attitudes towards telepresence (i.e., sense of being there), social norms, and perceived behavioral control are positively related to the use of virtual worlds. Findings suggest that perceptions of body image through the desire to become someone else, attitudes toward telepresence, and subjective norms significantly affect the use of virtual worlds. Perceived behavioral control was found to have no significant impact on the use of virtual worlds. Implications and directions for future research are discussed
Having But Not Holding: Consumerism & Commodification in Second Life
No full textThis is a brief essay, we call "think-pieces", designed to stimulate a discussion on a particular topic. For this series of essays we propose the following question:
"Consumer behavior in virtual worlds, is it really any different to the real world, or is it simply a case of \u27old wine in a new bottle\u27?
Virtual World and Real World Permeability: Transference of Positive Benefits for Marginalized Gay and Lesbian Populations
No full textThis study looks at how marginalized gay and lesbian people experience social pressures to conform to hetero-normative culture, how those pressures may lead to negative states, and how positive experiences in online virtual worlds would provide benefits over time and, presumably, become transferable into real life. I will show that engagement with Second Life can be a positive experience and that this positive experience can extend beyond the virtual world to provide lasting benefits in real life. The implications for educators are impressive. In creating virtual world communities, educators, psychologists, and other researchers can provide a safe harbor in which marginalized people can more fully explore their identities and develop the positive coping skills needed to deal with real world stigmatizing influences, which originate within the social environment. For scientists and technology innovators, the creation of virtual world communities and gaming/training programs would be an exciting path to explore, especially for those interested in social justice concerns