Week 5 Questions and Answers

1. Based on your experience in various cyberspace venues, do you think that ‘hyperpersonal’ communication exists?  

I do think that hyperpersonal communication exists because in certain venues, such as Facebook and Second Life, it goes beyond simple text. Visuals are used to enhance the experience of communicating with other people, and this is turn helps us to create an image of ourselves to present to the virtual world, which may not always be accurate. It may not be the same face seen by people we know in the ‘real’ world. For example, when choosing an avatar in Second Life, we may choose one that is nothing like how we really are, but rather how we would like to be, and this is how other people see us online.

 

2. Do you think group memberships are important to communication in cyberspace and why?

Group memberships are important, because it gives us a sense of belonging. We become part of an online community with like-minded people who share the same interests and opinions as us, and in some cases we might not have that with people in the ‘real’ world. As a result, we seek out people who are like us and join their communities, and it can be comforting to know that we aren’t alone in the way we think about things. We can express what we really feel to these people, because we know that they feel the same as we do, and we don’t have to lie or pretend just to save face.

 

3. How are norms developed and monitored in cyberspace?

I think that norms are developed as general rules of what is and isn’t acceptable for communicating with other people. A lot of the time, it is basic common sense where to draw the line (i.e. not blatantly insulting other people in public), and has some parallel with how people should behave in the real world. These tend to be monitored by either site administrators, or in forums by moderators to enforce the rules that have to be followed.  

 

4. To what extent do the models discussed apply to graphical virtual worlds, such as Second Life? 

The hyperpersonal model allows for anonymity in SL, as people use avatars for communicating with others and don’t reveal their true selves if they don’t want to. They don’t hold back as much as they would normally because they aren’t accountable for as much sue to anonymity. In fact, most of the models discussed this week include this; people are completely anonymous in SL, and they have lower inhibitions because nobody really knows them and they may be more daring than they would be in real life. Also, people can thus create a false image of themselves.