Virtual Reality Challenges Basic Definitions of Human Response

Dots| Anyone who follows the virtual world trends knows that the lines between digital and ‘real’ life are blurring. People experience a wide range of emotions online, and who’s to say which responses are real and unreal?

Yes, researchers have established a positive correlation between depression and how much time a person spends online. It’s a cart and horse correlation, with no firm knowledge of the order of events.

“If you’re living in a small town, and you’re a girl and you don’t have the right body type, you get ostracized. You get marginalized,” says Edward Castronova, a professor of Telecommunications at Indiana University “I’m not ready to blame that person for trying to have a society that involves an environment where she can actually be accepted.”

The focus of the ABC New article is as business-oriented as personal. Advertisers spend a third of a trillion dollars annually to induce consumers to buy their products. Virtual worlds deliver a fully-engaged customer. Read on.

Could Virtual Life Make Some Happier Than the Real Thing?