Title
The virtual sandbox
Abstract
Modern virtual environments are three-dimensional, simulated worlds. Inside of them, avatars live the equivalent of a human life: they walk, talk, and interact with other avatars, thus exposing what is considered to be social behavior. As a result, virtual worlds lend themselves to the study of social behaviors in a laboratory setting. In fact, their technical capabilities provide a number of advantages over real life experimental laboratories. On the downside, however, virtual worlds also add complexity to experiments by clouding the identities of the people who "play" the role of their avatars. Despite these issues, virtual environments can contribute to future experimental research by addressing three generic needs that information systems support: increasing social presence, offering an elaborate visualization tool, and providing a safe haven for simulation, exploration, and innovation.
Year
DOI
Venue
2007
10.1145/1314234.1314240
Database
Keywords
Field
DocType
human life,virtual sandbox,real life,experimental research,social presence,experimental laboratory,modern virtual environment,social laboratories,social behavior,simulation,virtual environment,elaborate visualization tool,virtual world,visualization,laboratory research,future experimental research,virtual worlds,three dimensional,information system
Sandbox (computer security),Information system,Metaverse,Social behavior,World Wide Web,Computer science,Visualization,Haven,Human–computer interaction,Experimental Laboratories,Instructional simulation
Journal
Volume
Issue
Citations 
38
4
3
PageRank 
References 
Authors
0.42
0
2
Name
Order
Citations
PageRank
Iris A. Junglas157730.32
Douglas J. Steel2192.05