Psychology of the Avatar (The Good & The Evil Digital Twin)
The concept of a digital twin is both exciting and futuristic, yet this article argues that it can also be naive. In the realm of avatar psychology, a pattern emerges as users immerse themselves in virtual worlds: behavior between avatars and real-life counterparts converges, while appearance may diverge. Virtual-world users often distance themselves from their physical appearance, crafting various representations and identities for the brands they create. Over time, avatars created for different purposes tend to mirror the preferences and behavior of their creator. Similarly to distinct Instagram pages representing different brands, various avatars may manage different aspects of businesses. Maintaining separate channels for communication, branding, and appearance is often the case. As users gain awareness of virtual dynamics through different avatars, they become more strategic in their positioning and behavioural choices within virtual realms and may shift from simpler “digital twins”.
The idea that you can have a “mini-me” running around in the virtual worlds is very appealing; however this idea may lack the emergence and evolution, not just of the virtual worlds but also of human behaviour.
After over two decades of navigating virtual worlds, the initial idea of creating a “mini you” for mundane tasks like shopping has evolved into something more complex. Once you’ve established a basic likeness to your real self in terms of hair and eye color, the urge to refine and perfect your avatar takes hold, akin to real-world cosmetic enhancements. As your avatar begins to closely resemble you, interactions with others reveal a curious phenomenon: an initial sense of invisibility and anonymity leads to brash and sometimes rude behavior. However, prolonged online presence gradually molds this behavior, transforming the virtual twin representing your darker impulses into a relic of the past. This transition marks the emergence of your “good twin” persona, shaping your online identity. The outcome—whether a positive or negative twin—depends on the extent of deception regarding your avatar’s characteristics like gender, race, or age.
” Is your avatar the same person you are in real life, just in a different body? The answer is yes, of course you are, but how many will attempt to deceive someone to see if they can get away with it? My experience says many will get away with it because most people simply accept the avatar they are seeing at face value. So do avatar choices affect our behaviour? Again I have to say yes, many will talk about their avatar in the 3rd person, did you see what she just did? Etc. As you change your avatar to be more socially acceptable to the virtual world you are playing in, unconsciously you are changing not just your avatar but also how you use it. “
Jane Godbehere – Ethical International Commerce, BioTech & Virtual Sustainability – Enrapture
In virtual worlds, the ability to customize avatars extends beyond mere likeness to oneself, allowing users to alter gender, skin colour, and shape to align with their chosen communities. This flexibility gives rise to fantastical beings and sci-fi characters, where physical attributes no longer hold significance. Avatars serve as personas for interaction, often concealing the true identities of their operators. Many users create multiple avatars, each reflecting different facets of their personality, yet remaining true to themselves. Consistency in names and accounts ensures transparency, revealing daily fluctuations in mood or expression rather than deception.
Complete disassociation from one’s avatar can lead to problematic behavior, particularly when individuals refer to their avatar as if it were a separate entity, divorcing it from themselves. This disconnection absolves users of responsibility for their avatar’s actions, a trend seen not only in virtual worlds but also across various social platforms where fictitious profiles abound, often used for deceptive or criminal purposes. Anonymity coupled with detachment from one’s avatar fosters false representations and encourages misconduct. However, leveraging one’s avatar purposefully can unlock a plethora of opportunities in the virtual realm, making such disassociation unnecessary and detrimental.
In January 2024, UK police began investigating a case of virtual rape in the Metaverse. The victim was a young girl under the age of 16 who was sexually attacked by a gang of adult men in an immersive video game. Although the assault was virtual, it caused significant psychological trauma similar to that experienced in a physical assault.
As Nick Yee & Jeremy Bailenson note in their paper “The Proteus Effect”: The Effect of Transformed Self-Representation on Behaviour: ‘The set of studies presented in this paper makes clear that our self-representations have a significant and instantaneous impact on our behavior. The appearances of our avatars shape how we interact with others.’
“I often humorously label the exact replica of oneself as the “evil twin,” as it’s confined to mundane tasks like clothes shopping and real-world practicality. In contrast, the enhanced and customised avatar takes on the role of the “good twin,” designed with virtual-world-specific behaviour in mind. This socially evolved main avatar enables various facets of your personality to shine, fostering connections with like-minded individuals. It offers a more genuine depiction of you, as assumptions made by others are not solely based on appearance but on deeper virtual interactions. “
Jane Godbehere – Ethical International Commerce, BioTech & Virtual Sustainability – Enrapture
Being yourself in your new avatar persona is most important regardless of what your avatar may look like.
The best businesses and solutions can be found in the gaps in a person’s real life. These gaps can be enhanced in the virtual and initiate unknowable creativity. This article argues that, actually, the good twin is an idea that starts in the virtual world but improves, enriches and actualises the real world. It is not about the avatar copying the real person but the real person copying and learning from the avatar, as it is easier and more accessible to make dreams, simulations and training happen in virtual worlds first.
