How does self-representation affect one's social behaviour and social dynamics? And how should a tool be designed to investigate such a phenomenon?
««Host» shows the changes in social behaviour which occur when people are depicted as someone else.»
This project explores the relationship between one’s self-representation and one's social interaction. It incorporates avatar research into social networking platforms such as virtual reality chat rooms. «Host» is a social avatar game, designed to serve as an investigation tool for game-generated events. It is an instrument to detach a person from their self-representation. Moreover, «Host» proposes to create an experimental situation in which one can take possession of an avatar created by a different person. The research process of the project is guided by the evaluation of the tools and settings of the series of experiments. The common denominator of various trials in the project is the application of digital ethnology in the real-world and vice versa. Finally, the result of the project is an analysis from four perspectives: role relationships, behavioural boundaries, self-representation and social interaction.
Website: mia-kang.com