Assessing the Effect of Simulated Physical Objects and Elements in Virtual Environments on Social Influence
Abstract
Previous research has shown that colors, textures, and objects in a physical space can influence the attitudes and behaviors of people within that space. No research, however, has been conducted on the importance of colors, textures, and objects in virtual spaces. Specifically, the effect that these objects and elements might have on one's susceptibility to social influence in a virtual space has not been investigated. A mechanism is proposed that leads to the hypothesis that as colors, textures, and objects are added to virtual space, then occupants or observers of that space become more likely to be influenced by other people in that space. While the participants who observed virtual spaces with colors, textures, and objects were more likely to be influenced than participants who observed the same spaces without colors, textures, and objects, the social influence measure was not significantly different across condition. An interesting finding, however, is that more influence occurred across all conditions than would have been expected in a face-to-face setting, as opposed to a computer-mediated setting. More research is warranted to understand how social psychological processes operate in computer-mediated settings and, more specifically, in virtual space.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jul 01, 2006
- Accession Number
- ADA451596
Entities
People
- Brian T. Johnson
Organizations
- Air Force Institute of Technology