Cyber psychology and the shifting persona of the cyber citizen: Who is the self in the virtual world?
Cyber psychology and the shifting persona of the cyber citizen: Who is the self in the virtual world?
The Internet has grown faster and has become more invasive and integrated into our lives than most people could have ever imagined. Since the year 2000, Internet usage has increased by 566%. [1] Current statistics estimate that 63.2% of Western Europeans are digitally active on a regular basis. When broken down generationally, 93% of teenagers are active. [2] From this and the constant progression of technology we can assume 100% of Europeans will be classed as digital citizens in the year 2020. Indeed Eric Schmidt, CEO of Google, has gone as far as to say that 100 % of the world’s population will be online in the year 2020 [3] Therefore it is increasingly important that we analyze and dissect how this new cyber reality is affecting individuals and society as a whole. According to the Psychological Society of Ireland: “Cyberpsychology [sic] is the study of the human mind and behaviour in the context of human-technology interaction. It encompasses all psychological phenomena that are associated with or affected by emerging technology. It encompasses all psychological phenomena that are associated with or impacted by emerging technology. Cyberpsychology studies human interactions with other emerging technologies, including the internet, mobile computing, mobile phones, PDAs, games consoles, virtual reality, digital media and any other technology which has demonstrated an ability to alter human behaviours.”
[4]
Cyber Psychology is a developing science; as such it is extremely hard to find a definitive definition on the subject. At its core it is can be described as a study of how individuals are influenced by, and how they interact with their peers when tethered to a keyboard, when all other facets of human communication i.e. sight, touch, hearing etc. are removed. When we consider that two thirds of all communication is non-verbal, [5] when it is
The Internet has grown faster and has become more invasive and integrated into our lives than most people could have ever imagined. Since the year 2000, Internet usage has increased by 566%. [1] Current statistics estimate that 63.2% of Western Europeans are digitally active on a regular basis. When broken down generationally, 93% of teenagers are active. [2] From this and the constant progression of technology we can assume 100% of Europeans will be classed as digital citizens in the year 2020. Indeed Eric Schmidt, CEO of Google, has gone as far as to say that 100 % of the world’s population will be online in the year 2020 [3] Therefore it is increasingly important that we analyze and dissect how this new cyber reality is affecting individuals and society as a whole. According to the Psychological Society of Ireland: “Cyberpsychology [sic] is the study of the human mind and behaviour in the context of human-technology interaction. It encompasses all psychological phenomena that are associated with or affected by emerging technology. It encompasses all psychological phenomena that are associated with or impacted by emerging technology. Cyberpsychology studies human interactions with other emerging technologies, including the internet, mobile computing, mobile phones, PDAs, games consoles, virtual reality, digital media and any other technology which has demonstrated an ability to alter human behaviours.”
[4]
Cyber Psychology is a developing science; as such it is extremely hard to find a definitive definition on the subject. At its core it is can be described as a study of how individuals are influenced by, and how they interact with their peers when tethered to a keyboard, when all other facets of human communication i.e. sight, touch, hearing etc. are removed. When we consider that two thirds of all communication is non-verbal, [5] when it is
References: [5] Hogan, K., Stubbs, R. (2003). Can 't get Through 8 Barriers to Communication. Grenta, LA: Pelican Publishing Company. [10] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_Life#Criticism_and_controversy [11] "The Relations between the Ego and the Unconscious" (1928)