The Social Life of Avatars: Presence and Interaction in Shared Virtual Environments

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Ralph Schroeder

The Social Life of Avatars

Presence and Interaction in Shared Virtual Environments

Ralph Schroeder

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English

Springer London Ltd
11 December 2001

Ethical & social aspects of computing; Graphical & digital media applications; Virtual reality

Series: Computer Supported Cooperative Work

Virtual reality technology has been developed commercially since the early 1990s but it is only recently, with the popularity of the internet, that it has become feasible to link many users simultaneously in shared virtual environments.

This raises a number of interesting questions such as: what is the difference between face-to-face and avatar-to-avatar interaction? What patterns govern the formation of virtual communities? How does the appearance of the avatar change the nature of the communication? There has been much speculation about issues such as these but research is still at a relatively early stage.

This is the first book to bring together work from relevant disciplines to form a reference guide for practitioners, students and researchers interested in how we interact in computer-generated environments.

It contains contributions from most of the key people in this area (including Microsoft Research's Virtual Worlds Group) and presents their findings in a way which is accessible to readers who are new to this field or who come from related areas. It is divided into 2 parts; chapters 2-6 deal with internet-based virtual worlds which have been widely used by the public; chapters 7-10 deal with networked VR systems which have been primarily used in pilot studies and research.

Some chapters take the viewpoint of a participant observer, whilst others take a more experimental approach and assess the results of relevant trials.

This book will be essential reading for anyone involved in developing, using or researching virtual worlds, and will also be of interest to students on courses such as VR and Computer-mediated communication.

Edited by: Ralph Schroeder
Imprint: Springer London Ltd
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Edition: Softcover reprint of the original 1st ed. 2002
Dimensions: Height: 235mm, Width: 155mm, Spine: 12mm
Weight: 380g
ISBN: 9781852334611
ISBN 10: 1852334614
Series: Computer Supported Cooperative Work
Pages: 223
Publication Date: 11 December 2001
Audience: Professional and scholarly , Undergraduate
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

Reviews for The Social Life of Avatars: Presence and Interaction in Shared Virtual Environments

"From the reviews: ""At the heart of this book is a simple question: how do people who meet in computer-generated worlds interact? … The strengths of this book lie in what it reveals of the orderliness of interaction in virtual environments. … If you work in this domain, should you have it on your bookshelf? Yes, of course."" (Peter Tolmie, New Media & Society, Vol. 6 (3), 2004) ""If you are interested in virtual environment (VE) and social interaction in various types of VEs, this book is an excellent resource. This book focuses on how people interact with each other in computer-generated virtual worlds. … The Social Life of Avatars gives readers two valuable points: how to improve the VEs and the potential that social interaction in virtual environments can be applied in various forms of computer-mediated interaction. Finally, let me recommend this book to you."" (Sally Hong, Educational Technology and Society, Vol. 5 (4), 2002)"