INVENTARIO DE AUTOESTIMA PARA ADULTOS COOPERSMITH

Students’ learning

Students were asked to talk about their learning experiences in Second Life Student V: its fun

Student I: not very effecient

Student L: It's much easier than I thought! Student V: but distracting

Student C: the lecture part was okay, the group discussion was pretty akward Student M: it's fun..but i need to get used to it

Student Y: I found it was much easier to post my thoughts than try to talk in class

Students were asked to recount where they were in their development Student B: i am having diffculty navigating

Student V: My first priority was to figure out how to improve my appearence Student M: who doesn't

Student B: i want to improve my appearance and that is the only thing i have explored here

Student D: I wanted to learn how to get around Student V: II've figured that out but still cant walk right

The students made reference to the process by which they were becoming familiar with the world and their place in it, recognising that there are separate stages for them to become involved in the world.

Student A: first making creative efforts, then learning from instruction too Student R: things are okay, I'm loving knowing some "safe" places to go

Student O: Just like life, I imagine one day i'll just realizer i'm doing it without effort and then there i'll be... for that

Relating to extended body

Some students were already referring to their avatars in the first person, for example, this student when demonstrating the effect of setting their avatar to the “away from keyboard” gesture says

Student O: I'll try it to show you what happens to me...

Some still felt disquiet about their extended bodies and anxious that they were exposed to others because of them.

161 Student O: This is my first experience with SL and it's been ....bizarre ... Being a complete novice at everything... bevcoming part cat and not being able to get out of it... not knowing how to walk or talk.... or type

Student E: This is sad...I am scared to leave! I am worried will end up bald, lost, and naked again. One life is enough...

Student Z: I worry about looking silly in this because I don't feel comfortable with this type of enviroment

Student D: don't want to look "stupid" ... I'm worrying about sitting down and can't do it

There was a process of learning about the extended body which took a while for students to observe and learn

Student K: I didn't realize our hands type when we type Student R: I was just noticing and hearing that

Recognition and copresence

Students also built up an experience of each other through the virtual world; some of this was by relating their Second Life avatar to the offline person, where this was known. This also took place by employing visual cues to recognise avatars

Student K: [Student R], did you get a list of who's who?

Student R: I only know two people. Oh wait I know three people. I remember [Student X] from the spandex pants! LOL

Student K: the tartan spandex! Student R: YEPPER

This extended body and recognition through the avatar added to the social presence and copresence within the environment and became a platform for interaction.

Student R: hey [Student X], couldn't figure out how to change your pants yet? Student X: maybe I like hot pink plaid spandex

Student O: I like hot pink spandex! Student K: It suits you

Student X: I started to change them, and when I got bored these were the ones I had on Student R: good reasoning

Student R: [Student D], why the change in clothes?

Student D: you guys were teasing me about my top last week ... or what you thought was NO top

Student R: you mean the one we thought you didn't have on? Student I: what top [Student D]? YOu were naked!

162 Student K: I only recognize you from your bracelet [Student D (using her real life name)] Student D: no, had a natural colored shirt on ... and the bling bracelet

Student R: I like the top

Student D: it's like real life, no time to shop

This was such an intrinsic part of their recognition of each other inworld, a single identity linked to a single avatar, that when my avatar changed appearance, this unsettled some of the students.

Student R: I LOVE the morphing that Gann can do. I was taken aback at first, mostly because I didn't know who it was

Comfort and inhibition

There were differences in attitudes to exposure to people whether they were known in real life or not. Some felt more comfortable if they knew who each other were, some felt less comfortable.

Student T: Well, I just think that in here it's very safe because you are hidden - you are safe

Student L: not so much because we don't know who one another is yet Student R: no, not right now, people don't know who we are yet Student T: No I think it IS safe because you are hidden

Student B: i agree it is more safe here to be "yourself"

Risk-taking and confidence

Part of this process was learning enough, and so feeling confident enough, to take risks. Student I: It is really hard to be a risk taker when we are just trying to get used to the world

Student A: you have to learn how to navigate, what you like, etc. get settled, then you might take risks

Student F: We talked about appearance and how blending in was a tactic to avoid bullying

Student V: we talked about how weather we looked like how we do in first life

Student R: [Student D], [Student Y], [Student L] & I thought we still cared about how we looked even though we were in second life

Student C: my group had a combination of choosing what style we wanted and just trying to deal with the technical difficulties

Student B: we said that too. we cared what we looked like

The appearance of a student’s avatar led the others to interpret whether or not that particular student was a risk-taker or not, and therefore confident and accomplished in the environment. This was sometimes accurate since the choice was deliberate (in the case of Student B’s wings) or

163 inaccurate since the action was accidental due to lack of experience (in the case of Student X’s tartan trousers or Student D’s skin-matching top).

Student L: I think my clothes say I'm not a risk taker Student R: [Student X] is!

Student L: true but maybe not here?

Student X: I think you're right [Student O], I didn't deliberately disign these pants to take a risk

Student T: ahh

Student X: I was experimenting with different designs and these are the ones that I was wearing when I got bored

Student O: wings

Student L: You look confident

Student M: Your stance makes you look confident Student T: make you look like you're part of this world Student L: It takes a special avatar to pull off wings Student V: ha ha I can

Student A: could just be having fun

Student B: mine is definitely to have fun. i am just struggling to learn what i am doing

Priorities of students

Students differed in the importance they placed on the look of their avatar. For some, selecting one of the off-the-shelf avatars available when creating an account was enough. Others wanted something more personalised. Others felt they wanted to learn just enough about redesigning their avatars to avoid looking out of place.

Student L: I tried to stay conservative and not stand out too much. Student O: It wa simportant to me to stand out

Student I: I just picked the avatar that was most appealing to me

Student K: Yes I'm not ready to be too crazy with my appearance or brave enough to have my avatar be too unattractive

Student V: My first priority was to figure out how to improve my appearence Student M: who doesn't

Student B: i want to improve my appearance and that is the only thing i have explored here

Student D: I wanted to learn how to get around Student V: II've figured that out but still cant walk right

Students also gave their criteria for their choice of avatar Student L: I didn't want to look UGLY

Student B: that is my priority

Studeny O: I used shopping as practice for navigation

164 Student B: i chose the gender and nationality that i am

Student A: originality seems important to some as well, beauty in the eye ofthe beholder

Student L: I want to look like I smell nice.

Student G: then at the same time, I didn't want to be too skinny and generic Student V: i as well, although I wanted my skin to be darker, but didn't get to that Student T: I wanted to be taller