Social Networking, Second Life, & Virtual Reality

             In the Yee, et. al, (2007) article “The Unbearable Likeness of Being Digital: The Persistence of Nonverbal Social Norms in Online Virtual Environments” many concepts of social norms were tested in an massively-multiplayer online role-playing game.  This study sought to determine if “social norms of gender, interpersonal distance (IPD), and eye gaze transfer into virtual environments even though the modality of movement is entirely different” (p. 115).  This study took “snapshots” of avatars interactions in different surroundings (indoor vs. outdoor) in an online multiplayer game to see if the principles that govern human interactions normally (taking turns in conversation, social gaze, distance between interacting people, etc.) applied in the virtual world also.  What this study found through ANOVA comparison was that “the rules that govern our physical bodies in the real world have come to govern our embodied identities in the virtual world” (p. 120). As the researchers hypothesized, IPD was larger with the male-male avatars, and that mutual gaze was inversely correlated with IPD, which supported the Equilibrium Theory (p. 119).  The data also showed that eye gaze regulates conversation even in the digital world (p. 119).

            The question is- why is this study significant? The findings of the study support the use of this sort of technology in testing behavioral science theories, as well as expose people to unique situations that are not possible in the real world.  For educators, this can be applied to instruction in two specific ways. First, with students who are exhibiting disruptive behaviors in the classroom, this type of virtual world may provide them an opportunity to experiences some social exposure in a positive way without constant discipline, especially those children with Autism or the like.  This gives them an opportunity to practice real life behavioral skills. Secondly, this type of environment may work extremely well in preparing students in higher order critical thinking skills. Allowing them a free environment to create their own world with their achievements in the game and virtual relationships can be invaluable to preparing them for real world situations. As this study shows, social norms are consistent in a virtual game often, so in a controlled environment educators can better assist students with real life social lessons as well as things such as budgeting and life planning.  These things require math, economics, and reading, following directions, and comprehension skills in addition to the social development it offers.

            In the Kamel Boulos, et. al, (2007) article, the use of the Second Life interface was studied to determine its educational potential to medical/health librarians and educators (p. 233). This study explored what roles this 3D virtual world can play in health education and literacy at a variety of ages and knowledge levels.  This virtual platform provides people with the opportunity to learn about nutrition in a fun way, listen to heart sounds to identify murmurs, and even explore a 3D eukaryotic cell (p. 235). One of the major capabilities highlighted was the opportunity for people to experience a variety of mental illness, like hallucinations for example, in an effort to educate them about mental illness.  This study also looked at how “avatars may yet play a crucial role in the success or failure of education” (p. 240).  Overall, this article found that Second Life offers many advantages found to the field of education by providing “students with a psychologically safe environment within which they can participate in experiential learning” (p. 240).

            In an educational environment several concepts of Second Life can be applied to the classroom setting to enhance student’s learning.  Especially in higher education- namely health professionals, the applications presented in this article can easily be implemented to help students in medicine/nursing/dentistry to learn disease process, and give them an advanced in depth view of things that previously they have only been able to see in textbooks.  The authors also pointed out how this technology can be used with those people who have physical disabilities that render it difficult to maneuver out of the home.  For general purposes with this population, this platform offers an invaluable social, psychological, and educational experience.  The use of this virtual environment offers an immersive and rich experience for students in all fields of education. 

            In the Lenhart (2009) “Adults and social network websites” article, the author highlights several key ways that people are using social networking sites in their personal and professional lives.  She found that 65% of teens and 35% of adults are using some form of social medial in their lives, and although adults are much less likely than teens, they are still seeing several benefits.  Adults were found to use social media for personal more than professional reasons, but also claimed to use it for gaming purposes.

            As someone interested in higher education, I found this article to be interesting mostly because it focused on adult use of social media where usually research focuses on children & teenage use of social media.  We have explored several reasons why social media and interned based applications are valuable to education at all levels from elementary to higher education, but few articles have looked at how adults are experiencing social media daily.  Because the benefits of adding internet based applications to educational experiences are so overwhelming, it is important to not only teach students but also adult educators how to utilize this technology.  Social media and internet based applications offer students a way to interact with each other and material in a way never before possible.  They trick is getting educators to buy-in and get comfortable with this technology so that they are integrating it into their classrooms.  The Lenhart (2009) article shed some light on how adults are using social media and this is helpful in determining the best way to engage them further in it.  The advantages that technology has to offer to education are invaluable to how students these days want and need to be presented information, it is an educators job to become comfortable with this technology to give students the opportunity to learn and grow in an environment that is becoming largely technology based.

References

Lenhart, A. (2009). Adults and social network websites. PEW Internet &

         American Life Project

Kamel Boulos, M. N., Hetherington, L., & Wheeler, S. (2007). Second life: An
        overview of the potential 3-d virtual worlds in medical and health education.
        Health Information and Libraries Journal, 24, 233-245.
        doi: 10.1111/j.1471-1842.2007.00733

Yee, N., Bailenson, J. N., Urbanek, M., Chang, F., & Merget, D. (2007). The unbearable likeness of being digital: The persistence of nonverbal social norms in online virtual environments. CyberPsychology & Behavior, 10(1), 115-121. doi: 10.1089

Self-Determination Theory

            Everything we accomplish in life takes some form of motivation to do. Whether the motivation is external or internal does not make a huge difference, it just has to be present.  One of the largest challenges in education as a teacher is to find a way to help students develop intrinsic motivation through the use of external factors, such as rewards, grades, and praise.  The Self-Determination Theory (SDT) examines the roles these concepts play, through focusing on “the interplay between the extrinsic forces acting on persons and the intrinsic motives and needs inherent in human nature” (Deci). 

            This theory explores human motivation and personality in cognitive and social development (Deci).  Self-Determination Theory seeks to examine how social factors foster or prohibit intrinsic motivation and therefore affect quality of performance.  The main factors taken into account for this theory are a person’s feelings of autonomy, competence, and relatedness; it is hypothesized that when a person experiences a high level of these three factors their motivation is high and thus so is the quality of their work.  The opposite also applies- if a person feels that these three abilities are unsupported in a social setting, their intrinsic motivation will be low in that setting.

            The main assumption of SDT is that “people are active organisms, with evolved tendencies toward growing, mastering ambient challenges, and integrating new experiences into a coherent sense of self” that require “ongoing social nutrients and support” (Deci).  This theory is made up of five mini-theories: Cognitive Evaluation Theory (CET), Organismic Integration Theory (OIT), Causality Orientations Theory (COT), Basic Psychological Needs Theory (BPNT), and Goal Contents Theory (GCT).  Each of these mini-theories explains a different aspect of how motivation plays an important role in social and psychological contexts (Deci). 

            The Self-Determination Theory plays a large role in present day education which is demonstrated in the current widely adopted grading and evaluation systems used in virtually every school district.  In a social context, being the child with a failing grade can affect a child’s feeling of autonomy, competence, and relatedness, which can according to this theory affect the child’s motivation.  There are several ways an internet-based application can be incorporated in the classroom to help student’s motivation by the concepts highlighted in the STD.  The concept of an online badge system is one perfect example of how to utilize an online system to enhance intrinsic motivation and the student’s feeling of achievement.

            In an online badge system, a student gets a “piece” of the badge for each specific activity they complete, and because the activities can be adjusted based on skill level, an educator is able to level the playing field for students through customization features.  This provides motivation to complete learning activities for an external reward (a piece of the badge), and builds feelings of autonomy, competency, and relatedness in students. As children are able to on their own complete activities, they are able to feel that they have the skills to complete other activities.  The badge system is set up based on student profiles, so no other student knows how his or her classmates are doing unless he or she shares with them.

            This platform ties nicely into developing concepts that are key in SDT.  The online badge system presents new challenges to students after they have mastered previous ones and always presents an external reward.  The personal drive to achieve completion of tasks in order to obtain more badges will grow as the student begins to feel more autonomous and capable of doing so, and the environment allows for educator support and minimal social confrontation or discomfort with peers as it moves away from a traditional grading scale.

References:

Deci, E. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.selfdeterminationtheory.org/theory