ABSTRACT
As noted in previous chapters, there is a paucity of research on the effect of STAs on those who play video games or otherwise engage in non-gaming online VEs (e.g. Second Life and Sociolotron). The limited research that has been undertaken on, for example, identification with the virtual character is certainly an important area for continued investigation: for it is our contention that such identification is necessarily antecedent to an individual seeking psychological parity across domains, particularly when they identify with characters or characteristics that are uncharacteristic of their offline self. To date, it is not clear what factors affect how well an individual is able to transcend domains after identifying with a character within a space with such potentially different freedoms as discussed here – certainly these factors have not been empirically tested. Moreover, we are still in need of a fuller understanding of how an individual might cope with the disparity between selves when identification in each space is strong and representation and action across spaces incongruent. Neither can we, at this time, fully explain or predict when STAs might become a mark of that which is identity enhancing or even identity defining for a given individual within a given space of altered contingences.
