I wish that I could have a more positive outlook on Second Life. As we watched the Digital Nation piece on the site the other day in class I secretly hoped that it would change my opinion about the game. Sadly however, the Digital Nation piece did not change my opinion...I still find the site as strange as I did before. Today, however, I am going to try to change my thinking and attempt to recognize potential benefits Second Life can offer.
I was reading this article entitled "Second Life Teaches Life Lessons" and it talked about the benefits of Second Life for abused children. Second Life provides a safe platform for them to test out social skills and reintegrate back into the social landscape. Second life also provides a unique socializing platform for those who are disabled. In Second Life they are able to meet people without others even knowing that they are disabled. They are able to move freely and interact in a way they never have before. In addition, Second Life allows many who suffer from autism to be socially engaged, something which is very difficult for many who have it to do. I can also see the benefits Second Life can offer in terms of group therapy. Since one does not actually know the people it can be a lot easier if they simply have someone who can hear them out for free, and this is available at any time of the day.
Second Life's benefits seem to fall into the category of being a bridge between reality and the virtual world, however all of the above uses of Second Life are aimed at helping the person reintegrate into real world interactions who are inhibited from doing so by life experience or disability. Perhaps if the site was simply called something besides "Second Life" it would not seem so escapist and would be easier to look at in a more positive light.
I cant believe that a game like Second Life could be used to help abused children, then again, I really would not know because I never played the game before. I too wish I could have a more positive outlook on Second Life but I guess you have to really get into it in order to see what the benefits are.
ReplyDelete_liz
Second Life is quite strange - if you're not using it to meet with friends, or for business, what are you using it for? (Maybe that's a question we don't want answered.)
ReplyDeleteBut wow. I never knew about Second Life being used for abused children. It got me thinking - could Second Life be an outlet for someone with disabilities? Seems like the possibilities in that department would be limitless.
Very interesting post.
I think it is pretty easy to see the negative aspects of Second Life. I'm glad you found some positive things about the program. I never knew that Second life was being used for abused people to reconnect with society. It makes me more hopeful about Second Life as a tool for social engagement as opposed to isolation. The clip we watched from PBS's "Digital Nation" definitely seemed to show the ridiculous distractions the program can cause for employees (should they really be worrying about their virtual outfit at work). Then again, I guess it's better than Solitaire.
ReplyDeleteSecond Life may be helping these children cope because it puts them at an equal level with everyone else but this is only a temporary solution because it is not helping cope in reality because they won't interact with other kids on a face to face level.
ReplyDeleteI think you did a good job finding a positive in second life. I know a lot of people in class have only had negative things to say about it, myself included. In order to have a fair discussion about this internet phenomenon it is important to look into the positives as well as the negatives.
ReplyDeleteI agree with everything that has been said above. It is a good thing that you were able to find a positive article about Second Life, because, as was said previously, many people think it is more negative than anything else. Even though I do believe that certain aspects of Second Life are creepy, if it allows these teenagers and young children to find some kind of solid footing, then it is okay. However, they will need to be careful about seriously they take the virtual world.
ReplyDeleteIt's tough to take second life seriously after watching the creator act like a creepy wierdo in the digital nation documentary we watched in class. He didn't seem to comprehend the negative aspects of his creation and the potential pitfalls associated with it. Having said that, the autism and group therapy examples are some positives in the midst of all the controversy.
ReplyDelete