Abstract
Three studies investigated whether users' strategies for customising online avatars increase their self-focused attention, also known as private self-awareness. Study 1 showed that a high number of users adapt their avatars toreflect their own appearance. Study 2 demonstrated that users who perceive their avatars to be similar to their own appearance experience as a result heightened private self-awareness. In Study 3, private self-awareness pervadedsocial interaction taking place over time when users with representative avatars, compared to a control group, reported increased private self-awareness. Drawing from research in interpersonal communication, we suggest that avatars which increase their owners' self-focus may have an influence on online behavior in the context of social computing.
| Original language | English |
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| Title of host publication | Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems - Proceedings |
| Pages | 445-448 |
| Number of pages | 4 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 2007 |
| Event | 25th SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems 2007, CHI 2007 - San Jose, CA, USA United States Duration: 28 Apr 2007 → 3 May 2007 |
Conference
| Conference | 25th SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems 2007, CHI 2007 |
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| Country/Territory | USA United States |
| City | San Jose, CA |
| Period | 28/04/07 → 3/05/07 |
Keywords
- Avatars
- Interpersonal communication
- Self-awareness