191 research outputs found
Enhancing trustability in MMOGs environments
Massively Multiplayer Online Games (MMOGs; e.g., World of Warcraft), virtual worlds
(VW; e.g., Second Life), social networks (e.g., Facebook) strongly demand for more
autonomic, security, and trust mechanisms in a way similar to humans do in the real
life world. As known, this is a difficult matter because trusting in humans and organizations
depends on the perception and experience of each individual, which is difficult to
quantify or measure. In fact, these societal environments lack trust mechanisms similar
to those involved in humans-to-human interactions. Besides, interactions mediated
by compute devices are constantly evolving, requiring trust mechanisms that keep the
pace with the developments and assess risk situations.
In VW/MMOGs, it is widely recognized that users develop trust relationships from their
in-world interactions with others. However, these trust relationships end up not being
represented in the data structures (or databases) of such virtual worlds, though they
sometimes appear associated to reputation and recommendation systems. In addition,
as far as we know, the user is not provided with a personal trust tool to sustain his/her
decision making while he/she interacts with other users in the virtual or game world.
In order to solve this problem, as well as those mentioned above, we propose herein a
formal representation of these personal trust relationships, which are based on avataravatar
interactions. The leading idea is to provide each avatar-impersonated player
with a personal trust tool that follows a distributed trust model, i.e., the trust data is
distributed over the societal network of a given VW/MMOG.
Representing, manipulating, and inferring trust from the user/player point of view certainly
is a grand challenge. When someone meets an unknown individual, the question
is âCan I trust him/her or not?â. It is clear that this requires the user to have access to
a representation of trust about others, but, unless we are using an open source VW/MMOG,
it is difficult ânot to say unfeasibleâ to get access to such data. Even, in an open
source system, a number of users may refuse to pass information about its friends, acquaintances,
or others. Putting together its own data and gathered data obtained from
others, the avatar-impersonated player should be able to come across a trust result
about its current trustee. For the trust assessment method used in this thesis, we use
subjective logic operators and graph search algorithms to undertake such trust inference
about the trustee. The proposed trust inference system has been validated using
a number of OpenSimulator (opensimulator.org) scenarios, which showed an accuracy
increase in evaluating trustability of avatars.
Summing up, our proposal aims thus to introduce a trust theory for virtual worlds, its
trust assessment metrics (e.g., subjective logic) and trust discovery methods (e.g.,
graph search methods), on an individual basis, rather than based on usual centralized
reputation systems. In particular, and unlike other trust discovery methods, our methods
run at interactive rates.MMOGs (Massively Multiplayer Online Games, como por exemplo, World of Warcraft),
mundos virtuais (VW, como por exemplo, o Second Life) e redes sociais (como por exemplo,
Facebook) necessitam de mecanismos de confiança mais autónomos, capazes de
assegurar a segurança e a confiança de uma forma semelhante à que os seres humanos
utilizam na vida real. Como se sabe, esta nĂŁo Ă© uma questĂŁo fĂĄcil. Porque confiar em
seres humanos e ou organizaçÔes depende da percepção e da experiĂȘncia de cada indivĂduo,
o que Ă© difĂcil de quantificar ou medir Ă partida. Na verdade, esses ambientes
sociais carecem dos mecanismos de confiança presentes em interacçÔes humanas presenciais.
Além disso, as interacçÔes mediadas por dispositivos computacionais estão em
constante evolução, necessitando de mecanismos de confiança adequados ao ritmo da
evolução para avaliar situaçÔes de risco.
Em VW/MMOGs, é amplamente reconhecido que os utilizadores desenvolvem relaçÔes
de confiança a partir das suas interacçÔes no mundo com outros. No entanto, essas relaçÔes
de confiança acabam por não ser representadas nas estruturas de dados (ou bases
de dados) do VW/MMOG especĂfico, embora Ă s vezes apareçam associados Ă reputação
e a sistemas de reputação. Além disso, tanto quanto sabemos, ao utilizador não lhe
é facultado nenhum mecanismo que suporte uma ferramenta de confiança individual
para sustentar o seu processo de tomada de decisĂŁo, enquanto ele interage com outros
utilizadores no mundo virtual ou jogo. A fim de resolver este problema, bem como
os mencionados acima, propomos nesta tese uma representação formal para essas relaçÔes
de confiança pessoal, baseada em interacçÔes avatar-avatar. A ideia principal
é fornecer a cada jogador representado por um avatar uma ferramenta de confiança
pessoal que segue um modelo de confiança distribuĂda, ou seja, os dados de confiança
sĂŁo distribuĂdos atravĂ©s da rede social de um determinado VW/MMOG.
Representar, manipular e inferir a confiança do ponto de utilizador/jogador, é certamente
um grande desafio. Quando alguĂ©m encontra um indivĂduo desconhecido, a
pergunta Ă© âPosso confiar ou nĂŁo nele?â. Ă claro que isto requer que o utilizador tenha
acesso a uma representação de confiança sobre os outros, mas, a menos que possamos
usar uma plataforma VW/MMOG de cĂłdigo aberto, Ă© difĂcil â para nĂŁo dizer impossĂvel
â obter acesso aos dados gerados pelos utilizadores. Mesmo em sistemas de cĂłdigo
aberto, um nĂșmero de utilizadores pode recusar partilhar informaçÔes sobre seus amigos,
conhecidos, ou sobre outros. Ao juntar seus prĂłprios dados com os dados obtidos de
outros, o utilizador/jogador representado por um avatar deve ser capaz de produzir uma
avaliação de confiança sobre o utilizador/jogador com o qual se encontra a interagir.
Relativamente ao método de avaliação de confiança empregue nesta tese, utilizamos
lógica subjectiva para a representação da confiança, e também operadores lógicos da
lĂłgica subjectiva juntamente com algoritmos de procura em grafos para empreender
o processo de inferĂȘncia da confiança relativamente a outro utilizador. O sistema de
inferĂȘncia de confiança proposto foi validado atravĂ©s de um nĂșmero de cenĂĄrios Open-Simulator (opensimulator.org), que mostrou um aumento na precisĂŁo na avaliação da
confiança de avatares.
Resumindo, a nossa proposta visa, assim, introduzir uma teoria de confiança para mundos
virtuais, conjuntamente com métricas de avaliação de confiança (por exemplo, a
lógica subjectiva) e em métodos de procura de caminhos de confiança (com por exemplo,
através de métodos de pesquisa em grafos), partindo de uma base individual, em
vez de se basear em sistemas habituais de reputação centralizados. Em particular, e ao
contrårio de outros métodos de determinação do grau de confiança, os nossos métodos
sĂŁo executados em tempo real
Review of the Status of Cyberbullying and Cyberbullying Prevention
Cyberbullying may be one of the âdiseasesâ of the 21th Century. Despite efforts to curtail its incidence and prevalence over the past 20 years, its direct and indirect harmful effects have made it a public concern about the wellbeing of children, adolescents, and adults. Empirical studies as well as psychological theories have addressed different aspects of cyberbullying (e.g. characteristics of victims, bullies, and bystanders, prevalence rates, specific types of cyberbullying behavior, gender differences, intervention/prevention strategies, legal/legislative measures, etc.). While consensus is evident in some areas researched, significant findings in other areas are inconsistent, indicative of the inherent complexities of this phenomenon and the methodological problems hampering insight into the nature of this problem and its possible solutions. The purpose of this review is to provide an overview of the current status of the research and theoretical perspectives on cyberbullying in hopes of encouraging good scholarship, improved methodologies and thoughtful inquiries to better inform educators, parents, mental health service providers, policy makers and others so that they can more effectively promote healthy online and offline behaviors among digital users. This discussion reviews the definition and characteristics of cyberbullying, its prevalence, populations affected, gender differences, theoretical perspectives and issues of intervention and prevention
A phenomenological study of problematic internet use with massively multiplayer online games
Massively multiplayer online games (MMOGâs) are a specific form of online computer games that allow for millions of people to simultaneously play online at any time. This form of online gaming has become a huge phenomenon worldwide both as a popular past time and a business endeavour for many individuals. There are more than 16 million people worldwide who subscribe to fantasy role-playing online games. Although such games can provide entertainment for many people, they can also lead to problematic Internet use (PIU). PIU has also been referred to as Internet addiction, and can cause significant problems in an individualâs functioning. The study aimed to enhance a greater understanding of the phenomenon of male adultsâ experiences PIU with MMOGâs. More specifically the study aims to identify if PIU with MMOGâs can be considered a form of Internet addiction within South Africa. Furthermore, assisting in the further development of online addiction diagnosis and treatment strategies. The study utilised an interpretive phenomenological approach (IPA) and participants were purposively sampled. The data was collected using semi-structured individual interviews. Furthermore, Braun and Clarks thematic analysis was used during data analysis while incorporating the four major processes in phenomenological research, namely 1) epoche, 2) phenomenological reduction, 3) imaginative variation and, 4) synthesis. Themes that emerged from the analysis of the participantsâ experiences included, initial description of use, motives for continued use of MMOGâs, consequences of PIU with MMOGâs, perceptions of PIU with MMOGâs, and treatment considerations. This study provided a thick description of South African and international literature and combines the literature with the themes that emerged from the participants experiences in order to produce discussions based on the findings of this qualitative study. Conclusions, recommendations, and limitations of this study informed future research on cyber citizenship by providing a detailed understanding of the context of South African male adultsâ experiences of PIU with MMOGâs
Questing with Grandma: Building Closer Families Through Intergenerational Video Gaming
While small and large technological miracles have undoubtedly made our lives easier, they have potentially also made a significant part of our daily social routine obsolete. People live in the same space but rarely spend quality time together, interacting and bonding. One of the solutions to diminishing family relationships may lie in the technology itselfâvideo games. Previous research having shown the sociability of video games, and in this study, we examined their potential in creating closer family relationships, especially among different generations. Participants (n = 183), mainly grandparents and grandchildren, were asked to play video games together over a period of six weeks. Participants completed a modified version of the self-other overlap, self-disclosure, and relationship closeness inventories before and after the treatment and responded to a series of open-ended questions post-treatment. Results indicate a significant increase in the inclusion of other in the self, as well as an increase in breadth and depth of self-disclosure for both younger and older adults. A comparison group (n = 88), comprising also mostly grandparents and grandchildren, was tasked with having conversations either face-to-face or in a mediated setting. The comparison group completed the same questionnaires, with results indicating a significantly smaller increase in the inclusion of other in the self and depth of self-disclosure, while breadth of self-disclosure experienced the same increase as in the gaming group. The findings suggest that video games can provide a platform for family communication, resulting in the rejuvenation and maintenance of intergenerational relationships. Gathering around a novel shared activity, both younger and older adults found new ways of connecting to their family members, whether through more frequent conversations, broader selection of topics, shared subjects, or pure entertainment
Spontaneous Communities of Learning: Cooperative Learning Ecosystems Surrounding Virtual Worlds
This thesis is the culmination of a five year research project exploring online gamers
and the cultures they engage with, both virtually in the many massively multiplayer
games and virtual worlds online, and in the physical spaces they inhabit in various
play spaces around the world. The primary research questions concerned social
learning in such spaces, i.e. how do players learn from one another what they need
to be successful, and what are the associated norms and practices for doing so?
What sorts of peripheral skills are gained, and are they applicable to physical world
contexts? Finally, what does participation in such spaces mean for individuals who
may have lacked other mechanisms for social learning, and what impacts might such
findings have on existing educational structures?
I anticipate that this thesis will generate as many questions as it will answer, and I
hope, that as a snapshot of a gaming culture in time, will be looked upon as a
monograph in the classic ethnographic tradition
More than Just a Game: Ethical Issues in Gamification
Gamification is the use of elements and techniques from video game design in non-game contexts. Amid the rapid growth of this practice, normative questions have been under-explored. The primary goal of this article is to develop a normatively sophisticated and descriptively rich account for appropriately addressing major ethical considerations associated with gamification. The framework suggests that practitioners and designers should be precautious about, primarily, but not limited to, whether or not their use of gamification practices: (1) takes unfair advantage of workers (e.g., exploitation); (2) infringes any involved workersâ or customersâ autonomy (e.g., manipulation); (3) intentionally or unintentionally harms workers and other involved parties; or (4) has a negative effect on the moral character of involved parties
@You: An Analysis of World of Warcraft Realm Forum Call-Outs
This study used content analysis to examine World of Warcraft realm forum threads directed at an individual with the intent to criticize in-game behavior. The study sought to determine if call-out threads share a common structure, and to define the process of posting and responding to call-out threads. The study collected data from sixty threads across seventeen server forums. Data analysis suggested that call-out threads shared a pattern of posting and response in which an audience acted as judge and jury to establish the credibility of the individuals in conflict and to declare a symbolic winner by providing or withholding favor. World of Warcraft call-out threads provided community members with the opportunity to negotiate what constitutes appropriate and inappropriate gaming behavior while maintaining a light, playful environment
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