The Virtual World – Second Life
A few years ago someone told me about a website called “Second
life”. “Second Life” is a virtual world started by the US firm Linden Lab in
2003, where users can design an avatar and live a "Second life"
online. The site became extremely popular when it was launched as it went from
having 450,000 members to 4 million members by 2007. The site however has had a
lot of criticism for many different reasons. One of the biggest criticisms is
probably the effect the game can have on users. Many users can
easily become mentally and physically addicted to the game. A similar criticism
to this, is the effect the game can have on body image. When people create
avatar’s they often try to make them look as attractive as possible. It doesn't matter if in reality you’re over weight, in “Second life” you can make yourself
as skinny as you want. When you start playing in this virtual world you can
leave all your body insecurities behind and become the person you've always
wanted to be. However as soon as you've left that computer you have to step
back into reality and back to those body insecurities. I am not surprised that
so many people become addicted to this website, I can see why. It can be an
escape where you don’t have to deal with the problems many of us are faced with
in reality. I can see many problems however with this, as people have created
their ideal perfect self in the virtual world this could be forcing them become
too obsessed at becoming and looking perfect in real life, leading them to even
lower self esteem then before. Some people such as RTI researchers suggest however
that the site could improve people’s body image. These researchers found
that having a thin and physically fit avatar could encourage individuals to be
healthier and more physically fit in their real lives. Some health
professionals are now even sending their clients to the virtual world for
treatment.
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