My Avatar, Myself: The Role of Personality in Defining an Authentic Virtual Environment

• In Event: Roundtable Session 27
  In Roundtable Session: Mediating Variables in Technology Research

Abstract

Although video games are not typically intended to teach educational content (e.g. math or reading), research links them to improvements in a range of abilities, including metacognition, problem solving, inductive reasoning, perspective taking and spatial abilities. However, video games require interactions through the use of a proxy representative (or avatar). This mediated interaction leads to the question, are personal learner characteristics (e.g., personality) reflected in our avatar? Results indicate that participant personality scores predict their corresponding avatar scores for Neuroticism, Openness, and Conscientiousness. This suggests that although there exists meaningful distance between individuals and their avatars, one must consider the characteristics participants (i.e., learners) bring to the environment because may influence what takes place within the environment.

Authors

• Michael McCreery, University of Nevada - Las Vegas

• Amanda L. Nolen, University of Arkansas at Little Rock

• S. Kathleen Krach, Florida State University