Avatar Identity Construction

When you create an avatar to represent you in Second Life, you do more than just select a little character. You select a vehicle for self expression. You begin by selecting a default avatar and then evolve it over time. This process of avatar evolution is critical in the construction of your avatar's identity. And, to the credit of Linden Labs, they have provided, sometimes in an indirect way, incredible tools to help you in this process of constructing your avatar's identity. You can modify the shape or other characteristics of your avatar. You can create your own shapes off line and import them. You can buy shapes from designers. You can be tall or short, frumpy or proud. You can be sexy or conservative. And, if you don't like what you have chosen you can change, again and again and again.

You can buy accouterments such as hair, jewelry and clothing. You can get tattoos or piercings. In short, you can try all the things in Second Life that you wanted to try in real life but did not have the nerve. This is a wonderful and safe way to explore self expression.

Beyond your looks, you can define your avatar identity through the groups you join or the people you hang out with. You can define yourself by the ways in which you talk to other people. You can write things in your profile to further define yourself. You can leave notes that only you can see in the profiles of other avatars so that you can remember your friends, how you met them and what you think about them.

You can try on differnt roles and identities. Many people have one avatar that serves as a mentor, there to help, and another alt to just hang out and chat. In real life we are often trapped in a role. Perhaps you are a teacher, a manager, or a public servant. You may feel you have an image to protect. Wouldn't you just love to be an annoying pain in the ass some times. Yes, who wouldn't. But, alas, in real life that isn't so easy.

Choosing different avatar identities provides you with two important benefits. First, you can explore who you are. You can 'try on' different identities to see how they feel. You might find that you are really not who you think you are. Second, you can see how other people experience the world. Try creating avatars of a different race, gender or social class. You will be surprised at how different the experience is.

In this way, you can think of Second Life as a 'self editor'. And, as a 'self editor' Second Life is par excellence. If you can imagine a self you can create it. And if you can create it, you can experience life through it. Yes, people become very attached to their avatars and they do begin to experience life through them. Not only does a person create and evolve the avatar. Over time, through the experiences of the avatar, the person begins to create and evolve who they really are. And it is the potential that Second Life offers for personal growth and development that is one of its most impressive capabilities. Next time we will look at Second Life as a vehicle for personal growth.