Study found that online presence can positively affect physical health and well-being.
Further research by Behm-Morawitz on virtual worlds will look at how avatars may be used to encourage tolerance of diversity. A person’s race, gender or ethnicity can be altered in the virtual reality world and they can be put into simulated situations where they suffer prejudice and discrimination. Avatars can create the modern version of the book Black Like Me, in which the Caucasian author darkened his skin to experience life as an African-American in the Deep South of the 1950s.
“I am also interested in studying how using an avatar with a different race or ethnicity may increase empathy and decrease prejudice,” said Behm-Morawitz. “This may occur through the process of identification with an avatar that is different from oneself, or through a virtual simulation that allows individuals to experience discrimination as a member of a non-dominant group might experience it.”
The study, “Mirrored selves: The influence of self-presence in a virtual world on health, appearance and well-being,” was published in the journal Computers in Human Behavior.
Virtual worlds can impact behavior in real life.
