Class
Article
Department
Sociology, Social Work, and Anthropology
Presentation Type
Poster Presentation
Abstract
Published in 2007, the Ideal Elf is a classic article studying character creation in Online Games. It used quantitative methods to address the difference between the idealize self of individuals surveyed, and the online characters they create. In their survey they found the difference between an individuals ideal self and the traits of the character they created was considerably smaller than the difference between the difference between the individual’s ideal self and their actual self. From this they suggested the creation of characters in game is partially a way for individuals to express their ideal selves. Our research attempted to find qualitative data to back up the quantitative approach taken by the Ideal elf survey. We found character creation seems unconscious, as most interviewees do not show previous reflection on their design decisions. This supports the conclusion of the ideal elf survey that idealized versions of those surveyed are expressed through their characters. Further, we found the Ideal elf did not address the tendency of gamers to create multiple characters, and this was a significant limitation to their research. Videogames are currently limited in their capacity to express a 3-dimensional personality through character generation. Individuals are only capable of putting slight variations on predesigned avatars, and these limitations seem to prevent individuals from feeling as if they have properly expressed an idealized version of themselves in game. This research suggests further studies should consider how multiple characters express different aspects of an idealized self. Given enough characters, we further hypothesize that together they could fully express an individual’s ideal self. One additional point this suggests is if the games become sophisticated enough, we may see gamers creating fewer characters to express idealized versions of themselves, although this requires a significant increase in the sophistication of character creation in online games.
Start Date
4-14-2016 1:30 PM
End Date
4-14-2016 2:45 PM
Included in
Anthropology Commons, Social Work Commons, Sociology Commons
Ideal Elves? Expressing a 3-dimensional personality in a 2-dimensional space
Published in 2007, the Ideal Elf is a classic article studying character creation in Online Games. It used quantitative methods to address the difference between the idealize self of individuals surveyed, and the online characters they create. In their survey they found the difference between an individuals ideal self and the traits of the character they created was considerably smaller than the difference between the difference between the individual’s ideal self and their actual self. From this they suggested the creation of characters in game is partially a way for individuals to express their ideal selves. Our research attempted to find qualitative data to back up the quantitative approach taken by the Ideal elf survey. We found character creation seems unconscious, as most interviewees do not show previous reflection on their design decisions. This supports the conclusion of the ideal elf survey that idealized versions of those surveyed are expressed through their characters. Further, we found the Ideal elf did not address the tendency of gamers to create multiple characters, and this was a significant limitation to their research. Videogames are currently limited in their capacity to express a 3-dimensional personality through character generation. Individuals are only capable of putting slight variations on predesigned avatars, and these limitations seem to prevent individuals from feeling as if they have properly expressed an idealized version of themselves in game. This research suggests further studies should consider how multiple characters express different aspects of an idealized self. Given enough characters, we further hypothesize that together they could fully express an individual’s ideal self. One additional point this suggests is if the games become sophisticated enough, we may see gamers creating fewer characters to express idealized versions of themselves, although this requires a significant increase in the sophistication of character creation in online games.