Week 5: The World(s)

Players in Second Life are as individualistic as people in reality. The interests of one person can be dramatically different compared to another. However, it's the commonalities between groups of people that is of specific interest here. In life, we strive for the acceptance of others and the forming of relationships with like-minded individuals. We learn to come together for these purposes at an early age, creating what's referred to as cliques in school. Generation Pulse explains that this is related to our necessity for homophily, "the tendency to associate with similar others" (Generation Pulse, 2010). This is believed to be so ingrained in our psychology that Africans have a word to describe it: Ubuntu. It's described in the book No Future Without Forgiveness as being "open and available to others, [and] affirming of others..." (Tuto). Since players of Second Life are still human, it makes sense that Ubuntu would be exhibited in them as well.

There are many regions in Second Life, including this Sci-Fi one

In previous reports, I've explained that the in-game world is broken into regions, which are collections of facilities that cater to similar interests. There as many different types of regions, ranging from specific topics such as vampires to much broader scopes like entire countries. The most popular areas seem to be simple dance clubs, with one user playing the role of DJ and the rest dancing or socializing to the atmosphere. These are almost identical to real club scenes in the types of mannerisms displayed. The main floor is dominated by players dancing, with the surrounding area of the building specked with observers and socializers talking amongst themselves. During my visit to one club, I noticed a few people approach those of the opposite sex and use typical pick-up lines or ice-breaking techniques, a common occurence in real social scenes as well. This leads me to believe the social structure of Second Life and the rules by which people form relationships are very similar to everyday-life society.

Dance clubs in Second Life are like their reality counterparts

My conclusion is that, like the real world, people create areas to attract those of similar persuasions and interests. When people come together under these terms, social interaction is bound to happen. The rules of engagement and social rituals that produce lasting relationships after the initial interactions are also highly influenced by, if not completely reproduced from, reality.