Description:
Students explore what it means to have multiple and merging "identities" in an online community. How are interpersonal relationships and group interactions manifested in virtual environments? How are identity and selfhood expressed? What is the impact on communication when gender, race, and other physical attributes are self-selected and represented digitally? What are the implications for privacy and security? What does this mean for the workplace? What do 'human rights' mean in a virtual society and is citizenship changed with purely online interaction? Students will evaluate the consequences of a digital context on the self and society.
Learning Objectives:
Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:
- Become immersed in a digital environment, and evaluate how persistent digital worlds influence individual, small group, and community interactions.
- Apply course readings to analyze user experiences in a virtual environment.
- Critique arguments on property, privacy and ownership in a virtual context.
- Evaluate virtual environments as collaborative work tools and examine the implications on the future of work.