Customizing Avatars and the Impact on One’s In-Person Life and Communications

Abstract

Teaching or conducting medically-related telehealth over a Virtual World involves the use of an avatar as a representation of oneself. In health care, one outcome of interest is whether an avatar’s physical similarity to the user impacts the user’s attachment to the avatar and consequential changes in their personal life and behaviors. The answers to such queries remain in debate. This paper addresses the following questions: 1) Do participants customize their avatars’ appearance, and if so, how much time do they spend and what aspects do they change? 2) Does personalizing one’s avatar, or having the avatar physically resemble the user, impact attachment to the avatar and feelings that the avatar is an accurate self-representation?, and 3) Does avatar personalization, self-resemblance, attachment and accuracy of self-representation predict the impact of VW participation on volunteers’ self-reported offline life and communications with friends and family? Results revealed that fifty percent of the volunteers altered their avatar, primarily their clothing. The physical similarity of one’s avatar to oneself predicted a positive impact on their offline life, and one’s level of attachment to his avatar predicted improved communications with friends and family. These results support findings that both physical similarity and attachment to one’s avatar are helpful in promoting positive off-line behavioral change.

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