I found a Journal extract and thought it was appropriate to the topic of identity. I think that it also links quite nicely with the topic of online gaming communities as it explores the idea of creating a virtual person. I think it becomes, for some people, a bit of a game, and there becomes a need to better yourself by making up a 'character' online. Is it just a 'fake' you, or is it a way of expressing yourself?
Abstract:
"This paper presents the author's opinion on the impact of online life on identity. The online exercise of playing with identity and trying out new identities is perhaps the most explicit in role playing virtual communities where participation literally begins with the creation of a persona; but it is by no means confined to these somewhat exotic locations. For many people, joining online communities means crossing a boundary into highly charged territory. The development of the windows metaphor for computer interfaces was a technical innovation motivated by the desire to get people working more efficiently by cycling through different applications much as time-sharing computers cycled through the computing needs of different people. Cyberspace like all complex phenomena has a range of psychological effects. Time in cyberspace reworks the notion of the moratorium because it may now exist on an always-available window. In the late 1960s and early 1970s, I was first exposed to notions of identity and multiplicity. When 20 years later, I used my personal computer and modem to join online communities, I had an experience of this theoretical perspective which brought it shockingly down to earth. I created selves that were made and transformed by language. People who cultivate an awareness of what stands behind their personae are the ones most likely to succeed in using virtual experience for personal and social transformation.
not sure if this link will work:
http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=sih&AN=2661506&site=eds-live
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