
The Damaging Affects from Social Interaction in Virtual Reality
From pictographs on the walls of Stone Age caves to the convergence of digital social networks, we as humans have used images as a source of communication for thousands of years. This leads us to the thesis of this paper which is going to argue the damaging affects of using virtual reality as form of communication, as it is detrimental to people’s social skills, it reduces their level of confidence and can have a long term affect.
Imagine an artificial world of people that have developed a social hierarchy, from God at the top to guests at the bottom, represented as avatar digital images in a virtual labyrinth made from the players themselves. People pay small amounts of money to include their own profile and begin their own fantasy in another life. They can freely network with other utopian digital members (Jakobsson, 2007). Though this is an element of communication, it simply isn’t real life interaction, as the user doesn’t actually make real contact with an avatar image. Consequently, the emotions of an avatar are non-identifiable and do not express a person’s true feelings. The user has to type each message to his or her receiver rather than speaking. Though communication via telephone isn’t face to face, the person is hiding behind the identity of an avatar. In some cases, the disclosure of information is in a way which he or she wouldn’t normally perform in the material world (Farnham, 2007).
People use avatars to experience a stereotypical fantasy in this virtual environment, building relationships and even increasing one’s self confidence through this form of idealism. The virtual world also gives them an opportunity to be more honest than usual, not having to confront with someone face to face and suffer any of the consequences (Yee, 2002). The user has the ability to fly and take other risks beyond the physical capabilities of reality, and what was deemed as impossible is now possible to achieve. Technology is offering people the opportunity to become disembodied and create something even beyond those chosen stereotypical characters (Mark). But literally opening the mind to this false sense of utopia can have a detrimental outcome on a sociological level. This virtual approach is considered week and careless towards having a real relationship. Thus, it can completely separate people from reality and everyday life (New Media Age, 2007).
Having the possibility to change one’s identity and develop new relationships isn’t all that the virtual worlds can offer. The gamer can become rich beyond belief, turn into a virtual millionaire, making virtual business transactions and can develop into a financially astute gamer. This can provide people a lesson in the real world of business dynamics (Metz, 2007). Though learning the ways of the business world is a fantastic opportunity to excel, it can have its disadvantages. Spending too much time inside a virtual environment making too much virtual money will not pay the real bills at the end of the week. Personal identity and self preservation is paramount to any one person. This routine is far better in the real world and should be the functions of our everyday careers (Farnham, 2007).
For those in the virtual community that choose a more erotic pathway, it is full of sexual possibilities, than can facilitate any user to satisfy their fetish needs and fantasy’s. With the correct usage of flirtatious netiquette and simply pushing the right buttons (in more ways than one), the user is away performing with their other recipient avatar. The real action though, is in the build-up to this simulated sexual experience, just like in real life the fun is in the chase (Stein, 2006). But who’s to know the true identity behind the avatar, what looks like a women of your dreams could be a dirty old man (Kalning, 2007). Not only does the mystery person behind the avatar leave a concerning thought, but looking back at one’s life and thinking that this compulsive behaviour was actually happening can also be disturbing. Any dysfunctional activity in life should be revised, and in its worst case help should be received (Scott).
In retrospect, a virtual world gamer has the right to choose when to play and can do so for any desired length of time, just as long as the resources are readily available. The virtual worlds offer people the chance to bond, to become a part of a shared culture and even have the opportunity to select these attributes according to taste or mood. There is a challenging experience of reaching a domain that has never been visited before. Unlimited entertainment is at anyone’s disposal (Struck, 2006). Now this is all good and well if the user was to be an immortal in reality, but unfortunately this isn’t the case. Excessive gaming disorders have drastic if not fatal consequences and can lead to heart failure. Incurred stress from an external situation in the real world or unwanted severing of an emotional attachment with another avatar can lead to these devastating results (Brand Strategy, 2006).
Gaming in a virtual world is clearly a fun packed form of entertainment. It offers a physically safe environment, which gives people from all ages an ideal chance to interact. The easy opportunity of being able to practice networking skills is a fantastic advantage for people that are less fortunate and don’t have the means to travel or witness other cultures. For those that choose to interact on a more explicit level, they should be very cautious on the depth in which their avatar is to explore. If the user is unable to identify the acceptable levels of sexual assertiveness or social netiquette, he or she should consult a specialist, because the damaging results can be long term and more permanent.

References:
‘Brand Strategy’. (2006). Gaming: All the world’s a stage. http://proquest.umi.com /pqdweb?did=1158249351&sid=1& Fmt=3&clientId=13713&RQT=309&VName =PQD (accessed 07 May, 2007)
Farnham, K. (2007). http://dev.aol.com/blog/kevinfarnham/2007/03/29/kath-sierra-the-internet-and-life (accessed 08 May, 2007)
Kalning, K. (2007). MSNBC. ‘Is a virtual affair real-world infidelity?’ http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18139090/ (accessed 09 May, 2007)
Jakobsson, M. (2007). ‘Why Bill was killed – understanding social interaction in virtual worlds’. http://www.informatik.umu.se/~mjson/files/bill.pdf (accessed 08 May, 2007)
Mark, G. ‘Flying Through Walls and Virtual Drunkenness: Disembodiment in Cyberspace’. http://duplox.wz-berlin.de/docs/panel/gloria.html (accessed 07 May, 2007)
Metz, C. (2007). PC Magazine. http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?did=1248291101& sid=6&Fmt=3&clientId=13713&RQT=309&VName=PQD (accessed 08 May, 2007)
‘New Media Age’. (2007). http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?did=1214184921&sid= 6& Fmt=3&clientId=13713&RQT=309&VName=PQD (accessed 08 May, 2007)
Scott, P. Article: Thoughts on Addictive Behaviour. http://dreamtreader.com /Dreamtreader.swf (accessed on 08 May, 2007)
Stein, J. (2006). Time. ‘My So Called Second Life’. http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb? did=1182222491&sid=1&Fmt=3&clientId=13713&RQT=309&VName=PQD (accessed 08 May, 2007)
Struck, S. (2007). PC Magazine. ‘The Gaming Generation; How do adults still find time for their favorite games?’ http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?did=1227084911& sid=1&Fmt=3&clientId=13713&GRQT=309&VName=PQD (accessed 07 May, 2007)
Yee, N. (2002). Mosiac: stories of a digital lives and identities. http://www.nickyee.com/mosaic/growth.html (accessed 08 May, 2007)
Cybertherapy

The Kids Help Line is a great idea for children that don’t have the accesability or confidence to consult their problems face to face or by the telephone. By the means of images, this service can help the adolesence select their personal problem before a consultation to speed up the process, using a 5 step process.

The Wrong Crowd documentry is an example of a typical childrens upbringing from back in the 50’s in Queensland. It’s a large file and needs broadband for this one.