Académique Documents
Professionnel Documents
Culture Documents
DOI 10.1007/s10796-012-9347-z
Abstract Second Life is an online 3D virtual world imagined and created by its residents. The residents can communicate, explore, participate in social activities, create and
trade virtual properties and services. The most common
communication media used in Second Life are text, voice,
instant messaging and video conferencing. The purpose of
the current study is to investigate why people communicate
in Second Life and opportunities of making real business
value. An online survey from Second Life residents was
performed to study communication behavior and business
opportunities in Second Life. The theoretical backgrounds
used in this study were the communication theory and social
systems and word of mouth communications for consumer
learning. The result was focused on the effectiveness and
superiority of communication in Second Life among other
social networking sites such as Facebook, Myspace and
Youtube. The communication is significant to policy
makers, managers and leaders for information sharing
and decision making.
Keywords Second Life . Virtual world . Communication .
Social networking . Online games . Business opportunities
1 Introduction
Second Life is an online virtual world electronic environment, developed by US based Linden Lab in 2003. Virtual
worlds are creation of mind and place for our imagination.
G. Sharma (*) : Y. Qiang : S. Wenjun : L. Qi
School of Management, Harbin Institute of Technology,
92 West Dazhi Street, Nangang District,
Harbin 150001, Peoples Republic of China
e-mail: gsharmahit2008@gmail.com
678
takes social responsibility and transparency through Information and Communication Technologies (ICT). This is a multiuser virtual environment where multiple people could
participate in social interaction and business activities.
The purpose of current research is to study communication behavior of residents in Second Life and online business opportunities in synthetic environment. The importance
of the study bears interpersonal communication and cognition in multiuser virtual environment. Second Life is useful
for making business policies and strategies, information
sharing and social interaction. Moreover, it has importance
in culture sharing, fun and entertainment and develop learning skills. For all these purposes, reliable and effective
communication is required. The managers and organization
leaders are greatly benefited by obtaining information. So,
communication plays important role on management.
The research question of the current study is why do
people communicate in Second Life and possibility of
making real revenue in Second Life. The significance of
the research is that the synchronicity of Second Life
communication facilitates to acquire immediate feedback
and response which will be useful for prompt decision
making. Online business in Second Life through effective
communication such as online events, training and education
has direct impact on real world economy. Moreover, Second
Life is an appropriate platform for researchers to perform
numerous research opportunities on information system,
social science, engineering, psychology and marketing.
Second Life has much more freedom to perform e-business
and social activities. Communication plays pivotal for the
existence and standing of virtual worlds. Comparing to other
social networking websites such as Facebook, Myspace and
Youtube, Second Life bears high social responsibility and
transparency (Hustad and Teigland 2008) through information
communication technology. This is a multiuser virtual
environment where multiple people could participate in
social interaction and business activities. Another significance
of Second Life is virtual reality which bears the concept
of presence and telepresence. Presence is defined as
sense of being in virtual environment physically. Telepresence means being in Second Life through communication media or mediated environment (Sheridan 1992).
Some examples of telepresence are user of multiple
online systems such as conference, listening to live recording
of music and video game play. Mediated situation induces a
sense of telepresence. The influencing factors are the
combination of sensory stimuli employed in the environment,
in which participants are able to interact with the environment
and the characteristics of the individual experiencing the
environment. In this connection, telepresence acts both
as a technology and perceiver. A virtual reality is referred
to as a real or simulated environment in which a perceiver
experiences telepresence (Held and Durlach 1992). In
2 Literature review
Second Life is an electronic gaming and online social
networking platform serving as an information superhighway. The place is globally shared and enables people
to perceive and utilize the environment (Messinger et al.
2009). The traditional advertising network is being
replaced by modern electronic social networks and behavior
of individual in online networks can be different from the
behavior of the same person in traditional social network
(Clemons 2009). In this connection, the communication
behavior in real life and virtual life becomes different.
Second Life is the computer generated multi agent system
reflecting meta games and interactive dramas. Previous
researches have made a limited number of studies on
Second Life communication. Some of the researches
have been performed on effectiveness of chat environment in Second Life. Few of them are on virtual reality,
virtual community and social networking highlighting
human avatar relationship. The current data provided by
Linden Lab shows that more than 80% of internet users
will be communicating through Second Life by the end
of 2011 (Gartner, Inc. Press Release 2007).
Some previous researches on Second Life have been
performed on development and evaluation of virtual campus
for learning environment (Lucia et al. 2008). Virtual campuses are recreational, collaborative and communicative
zones. The result was focused on presence, communication,
awareness and perceived sociality. Moreover, it covers
virtual learning environment, productivity and general
satisfaction. Some other studies were focused on word
of mouth communication (WOM) for consumer learning.
It became an important market force for consumer decision making. WOM is the formal transmission of ideas,
opinions, comments and information between two or
more individuals. The consumer is an active participant
in an interactive exercise of multiple feedback loops and
highly immediate communication (Valck et al. 2009).
Second Life has increased opportunity to gather and
share information on products and services. Online word
678
takes social responsibility and transparency through Information and Communication Technologies (ICT). This is a multiuser virtual environment where multiple people could
participate in social interaction and business activities.
The purpose of current research is to study communication behavior of residents in Second Life and online business opportunities in synthetic environment. The importance
of the study bears interpersonal communication and cognition in multiuser virtual environment. Second Life is useful
for making business policies and strategies, information
sharing and social interaction. Moreover, it has importance
in culture sharing, fun and entertainment and develop learning skills. For all these purposes, reliable and effective
communication is required. The managers and organization
leaders are greatly benefited by obtaining information. So,
communication plays important role on management.
The research question of the current study is why do
people communicate in Second Life and possibility of
making real revenue in Second Life. The significance of
the research is that the synchronicity of Second Life
communication facilitates to acquire immediate feedback
and response which will be useful for prompt decision
making. Online business in Second Life through effective
communication such as online events, training and education
has direct impact on real world economy. Moreover, Second
Life is an appropriate platform for researchers to perform
numerous research opportunities on information system,
social science, engineering, psychology and marketing.
Second Life has much more freedom to perform e-business
and social activities. Communication plays pivotal for the
existence and standing of virtual worlds. Comparing to other
social networking websites such as Facebook, Myspace and
Youtube, Second Life bears high social responsibility and
transparency (Hustad and Teigland 2008) through information
communication technology. This is a multiuser virtual
environment where multiple people could participate in
social interaction and business activities. Another significance
of Second Life is virtual reality which bears the concept
of presence and telepresence. Presence is defined as
sense of being in virtual environment physically. Telepresence means being in Second Life through communication media or mediated environment (Sheridan 1992).
Some examples of telepresence are user of multiple
online systems such as conference, listening to live recording
of music and video game play. Mediated situation induces a
sense of telepresence. The influencing factors are the
combination of sensory stimuli employed in the environment,
in which participants are able to interact with the environment
and the characteristics of the individual experiencing the
environment. In this connection, telepresence acts both
as a technology and perceiver. A virtual reality is referred
to as a real or simulated environment in which a perceiver
experiences telepresence (Held and Durlach 1992). In
2 Literature review
Second Life is an electronic gaming and online social
networking platform serving as an information superhighway. The place is globally shared and enables people
to perceive and utilize the environment (Messinger et al.
2009). The traditional advertising network is being
replaced by modern electronic social networks and behavior
of individual in online networks can be different from the
behavior of the same person in traditional social network
(Clemons 2009). In this connection, the communication
behavior in real life and virtual life becomes different.
Second Life is the computer generated multi agent system
reflecting meta games and interactive dramas. Previous
researches have made a limited number of studies on
Second Life communication. Some of the researches
have been performed on effectiveness of chat environment in Second Life. Few of them are on virtual reality,
virtual community and social networking highlighting
human avatar relationship. The current data provided by
Linden Lab shows that more than 80% of internet users
will be communicating through Second Life by the end
of 2011 (Gartner, Inc. Press Release 2007).
Some previous researches on Second Life have been
performed on development and evaluation of virtual campus
for learning environment (Lucia et al. 2008). Virtual campuses are recreational, collaborative and communicative
zones. The result was focused on presence, communication,
awareness and perceived sociality. Moreover, it covers
virtual learning environment, productivity and general
satisfaction. Some other studies were focused on word
of mouth communication (WOM) for consumer learning.
It became an important market force for consumer decision making. WOM is the formal transmission of ideas,
opinions, comments and information between two or
more individuals. The consumer is an active participant
in an interactive exercise of multiple feedback loops and
highly immediate communication (Valck et al. 2009).
Second Life has increased opportunity to gather and
share information on products and services. Online word
of mouth and the opinion of others are of vital significance in Second Life. As enterprise activates to support
consumer collaboration, word of mouth enhances capacity for individuals to connect, interact and refer, advancing the shift to consumer control (OReilly 2005).
Consumers increasingly turn to the Second Life to source
information and to engage with brand and products.
There is the difference between avatar email and traditional email communication. Avatar email has media richness and social presence. Managers need rich medium (e.g.
face to face communication) rather than lean media. Tradition email is a lean media (Younghwa et al. 2007). Virtual
reality defines presence and telepresence. Presence can be
thought as the experience of ones physical environment. It
can be defined as the sense of being in an environment.
Telepresence is referred to as the presence in the environment through communication media (Held and Durlach
1992). Second Life communication has significance to play
online games. Second Life online games have been creating
huge business and millions of users are engaged in this
environment. Enjoyment is one of the important factors of
gaming behavior (Jiming et al. 2008). People play online
games to remove challenges, make friends and spend time
but the basic reason is to enjoy (Davis et al. 2005; Kim et al.
2002). Such web based technologies are useful to create new
e-commerce for income generation and consumer participation (Holsapple et al. 2005). Second Life is the massively
multiplayer online role playing game (MMORPG), played
in virtual environment. MMORPG has synchronicity, i.e.
people could react with each other promptly. So immediate
feedback and interaction takes place resulting prompt decision making (Kevin 2007). The gaming environment has
player freedom, control and creativity. More than 80% of the
gaming contents are created by users (Messinger et al.
2009). So, online games cannot be separated from players
nor players can be separated from online games. The study
of online games is performed to know product development.
People achieve psychological experiences through digital
images and contents (Leo and Kim 2005). Digital images
are also called game items. For instance, armors and
swords. The gamers experience play vital role in online
games. The digital games help to learn about consumers
requirement.
Riva (1997) formulated that there are three types of
presence in virtual world: social presence, physical presence
and co-presence. Second Life communication is useful for
managers to share knowledge. As per the previous survey,
97% of managers believe that knowledge bears strategic
competitive advantage. Hemp (2006) argued that virtual
worlds have future importance for marketers. They become
interactive, collaborative and commercial platform for all.
In this connection, there is a huge opportunity of virtual
e-commerce. Second Life is one of the fast growing and
679
680
3 Theoretical background
3.1 Communication theory and social systems
Communication is defined as the exchange of information from one place to another. It is an exchange of
understanding. Lasswell (19021978) defines communication theory as who says what to whom in what
channel with what effect. Communication research in
Second Life has a broad scope to study human behavior.
The communication theory has been reflected at the
beginning of Socrates and Plato. Later, Aristotle developed
the theory of communication. Nowadays, communication
theory has application on information systems, psychology,
sociology, linguistic and advertising. Many authors and
researchers divide communication by context or levels
and human users are symbol users or symbol makers.
Interpersonal communication tends to focus on dyadic
communication, communication involving face-to-face
interaction, or communication as a function of developing
relationships (Miller 2005). Research into interpersonal
communication theory typically focuses on the development,
maintenance, and dissolution of relationships. Virtual world
has become a strong communication media allowing
distant participants to interact with real world to enhance
collaboration (Leimster et al. 2004). The development of
web 2.0 technology helps for policy makers, intelligent
analysts and researchers to better understand communication theory. Interactivity is the variable characteristics
of communication and has great concern to researchers
(Norman 1988). The important factors that contribute to
interactivity are speed, range and mapping. Companies
and organizations are using virtual worlds to communicate
with stakeholders through customer events, trainings and
collaboration sessions. Second Life combines social and
visual components which help to get resource and cost
efficiencies. Many companies are incorporating virtual
worlds activities into their integrated marketing communication strategies (Messinger et al. 2009). The implication of a
681
Technological
Social networking
Linguistic
Media richness
Participation in
Second Life
Communication
Interactivity
Entertainment
Telepresence
Making revenue
Variables which motivate individuals to join
Second Life Communication
Trust
Variables which explain Second Life
Communications effect on their environment
682
683
684
Acronym
Description
Items
Technological
Social networking
Entertainment
Making revenue
Second Life communication
Linguistic
Media richness
Interactivity
TEC
SN
ENT
MR
SLC
LIN
MRH
INT
4
4
4
4
3
4
4
4
Telepresence
Trust
TP
TRS
4 items
4 items
5 Methodology
5.1 Survey, pilot test and data collection
The survey questionnaires were prepared from review of
literature. Pretest of the questionnaires was conducted with
20 users to check the reliability and clarity of questionnaires. Pretest was done for screening of questions i.e. select
those which have clear meaning and understandable. The
pilot test was performed with 25 Second Life experienced
users. Some questions were modified as per the suggestion
of users to avoid confusions and to assess survey reliability.
The survey data is unique because behavioral data is taken
with individual interaction. Altogether 2,338 users were
requested for survey participation. The responses were received from 550 users. Thus, the response rate is 23.52%.
Out of them 48 responses were discarded due to incomplete
and invalid answers. Consequently, remaining 502
responses were used for data analysis. The follow up with
residents was made twice to get the response. The data was
collected online through survey conducted from January to
April, 2010. The survey contains 30 questionnaires and it
takes 10 min to answer. Each participant received 20 Linden
Dollars for answering survey questions. Second Life participants were contacted through Instant Messaging (IM), local
chat and note card message. Majority were invited through
IM, to focus their attention. However, some residents do not
prefer to talk on IM. Most of the participants were selected
who have more than 1 month experience in Second Life by
checking their profile. However, few residents below
1 month also participated in this survey, viewing our profile
and survey invitation through local chat. Lack of experience
prevents from invalid assessment. Some residents suggested
that local chat notice will also helpful to invite survey. So,
all categories of people took part in the survey. However,
people do not take enough care on local chat notice. On
personal conversation, survey link was sent after getting
items
items
items
items
items
items
items
items
685
Table 2 (continued)
N=502
N=502
6 months1 year
71
14
12 year
125
25
23 year
101
20
Above 3 years
86
17
Real gender
Male
Female
247
237
50
48
1.52
0.29
0.54
Dont want to
indicate
Gender in SL
10
Male
Female
240
244
49
49
Dont want to
indicate
Age in years
Below 13
1317
1
3
0
1
1824
124
25
Less than 1
15
9
60
2
12
2534
123
25
510
91
18
3544
129
26
1020
146
30
45 and above
111
22
2040
122
25
Dont want to
indicate
Location
Above 40
66
13
North America
South America
250
22
52
5
Meet people
Explore
439
354
89
72
Europe
131
27
Chat
401
81
Asia
33
Buy
223
45
Africa
Sell
96
19
Australia
18
Hire
19
Others
21
Create
196
40
Entertainment
218
44
Others
137
28
Local chat
Instant messaging
463
464
93
93
Voice
286
58
Blog
52
10
Wikis
44
9
28
4.48
0.29
1.35
0.53
1.16
Less than 1
About 1
15
50
3
10
13
182
38
35
106
22
More than 5
130
27
1.18
1.08
4.03
1.62
1.27
Activities in SL
2.29
2.78
1.67
Profession
Student
Unemployed
112
29
23
6
Management
40
Technical/IT
62
12
Administrative
25
Production/
manufacturing
Sales/support
16
24
137
Medical
25
Search engine
130
26
Retired
19
Video games
23
Others
5.53
12.91
3.59
145
29
Podcast
11
Others
59
12
Education
3.65
1.40
1.18
16
72
3
15
Bachelor
143
29
Local chat
IM
106
290
22
59
Best media
High school
166
34
Voice
92
19
Others
91
19
Video
Annual income
Media use
Doctoral
Masters
1.99
0.44
0.67
3.01
4.63
2.15
2.78
1.92
1.39
Below $1,000
$1,000$5,000
59
51
14
12
$5,000$10,000
40
$10,000$20,000
52
$20,000$50,000
4.17
3.71
1.93
Less than 1
12
211
64
42
13
23
37
12
35
19
89
21
5 and above
25
$50,000$100,000
95
22
141
28
37
29
83
6
17
Less than 1
12
100
150
20
30
23
93
19
Experience in SL
Less than 1 month
16 months
3.59
3.90
2.23
1.49
686
Table 2 (continued)
N=502
35
67
13
5 and above
85
17
49
120
10
24
147
30
56
11
27
Dont know
91
19
Quality of voice
4.29
10.13
3.18
324
117
70
25
85
18
Youtube
234
50
MSN messenger
223
48
Skype
254
55
Yahoo messenger
180
39
15
Others
28
128
220
141
45
29
96
20
21
1.87
0.94
0.97
Learning experiences in SL
Lecture
Training
90
124
20
28
Conference
59
13
Video
59
13
Others
243
55
SL Second life
687
AVE
Composite reliability
0.941
0.608
0.867
0.699
0.764
0.765
0.679
0.635
0.661
0.661
0.979
0.752
0.951
0.873
0.907
0.905
0.805
0.773
0.886
0.853
R square
Cronbachs alpha
Communality
0.968
0.734
0.923
0.783
0.846
0.846
0.737
0.775
0.835
0.745
0.941
0.708
0.867
0.699
0.764
0.764
0.779
0.735
0.671
0.660
0.135
0.045
0.207
0.248
0.123
0.168
Redundancy
0.066
0.038
0.152
0.043
0.088
0.103
688
AVE helps to measure the amount of variance that a construct captures from its indicators relative to the amount due
to measurement error. In order to assess the convergent
validity, AVE of the stipulated construct should be greater
than 0.50 (i.e. the value of square root of the AVE should be
greater than .707) showing that most variance is captured by
the construct from its indicators (Fornell and Larcker 1981).
All the reliability coefficients should be above .70 and each
AVE is above .50, showing that the measurement are reliable and the latent construct can account for at least 50% of
the variance in the items. The loadings are in acceptable
range and the t-values are significant at the .01 level. If the
square root of the AVE is greater than all of the interconstruct correlations, it is evidence of sufficient discriminant validity (Chin 1998). In order to further access validity
of measurement instruments, a cross-loading table was constructed. It can be observed that each item loading in the
table is much higher on its assigned construct than on the
other constructs, supporting adequate convergent and discriminant validity. Chin (1998) suggests that, covariance
based estimates such as reliability and AVE are not applicable for evaluating formative constructs. Instead, the path
weights of indicators need to be examined to check if they
significantly contribute to the emergent construct.
Discriminant validity can be verified by two criteria: 1.
the square root of the AVE for each construct is greater than
its correlations with all other constructs. 2. The loading of
each item on its target construct is larger than its cross
689
ENT
INT
LIN
MR
MRH
SLC
SN
TEC
TEL
TRS
ENT1
ENT3
ENT4
INT1
INT3
INT4
LIN2
LIN3
LIN4
MR2
MR3
MR4
MRH1
MRH2
0.981
0.986
0.942
0.337
0.227
0.256
0.219
0.167
0.169
0.276
0.283
0.224
0.325
0.381
0.385
0.395
0.352
0.846
0.624
0.646
0.305
0.266
0.222
0.239
0.252
0.139
0.516
0.456
0.189
0.197
0.195
0.238
0.184
0.181
0.952
0.931
0.910
0.275
0.283
0.225
0.279
0.264
0.297
0.309
0.308
0.216
0.146
0.173
0.308
0.285
0.283
0.914
0.679
0.894
0.196
0.212
0.382
0.392
0.371
0.519
0.274
0.259
0.295
0.269
0.271
0.223
0.151
0.174
0.816
0.923
0.282
0.286
0.259
0.352
0.194
0.199
0.205
0.181
0.202
0.176
0.159
0.162
0.440
0.395
0.375
0.383
0.365
0.429
0.367
0.342
0.328
0.276
0.226
0.207
0.184
0.181
0.435
0.397
0.258
0.257
0.226
0.392
0.142
0.099
0.155
0.148
0.123
0.175
0.101
0.133
0.395
0.498
0.315
0.333
0.323
0.348
0.403
0.293
0.455
0.413
0.354
0.265
0.4
0.205
0.385
0.386
0.250
0.256
0.257
0.411
0.221
0.169
0.287
0.244
0.244
0.176
0.200
0.151
0.473
0.478
MRH4
SLC1
SLC2
SLC3
SN1
SN2
SN3
TEC1
TEC2
TEC3
TEL1
TEL2
TEL3
TEL4
TRS1
TRS2
TRS3
0.321
0.175
0.292
0.259
0.314
0.255
0.317
0.147
0.062
0.310
0.194
0.298
0.349
0.208
0.228
0.229
0.174
0.380
0.189
0.379
0.352
0.489
0.290
0.435
0.229
0.029
0.407
0.309
0.277
0.564
0.348
0.273
0.419
0.285
0.234
0.065
0.217
0.227
0.270
0.180
0.229
0.054
0.033
0.224
0.344
0.365
0.355
0.358
0.232
0.234
0.211
0.166
0.060
0.209
0.210
0.190
0.115
0.228
0.107
0.020
0.200
0.280
0.352
0.255
0.229
0.154
0.200
0.159
0.880
0.251
0.475
0.420
0.397
0.326
0.299
0.333
0.129
0.569
0.281
0.302
0.474
0.276
0.393
0.547
0.327
0.341
0.708
0.954
0.939
0.352
0.338
0.286
0.303
0.164
0.288
0.262
0.299
0.332
0.221
0.348
0.350
0.263
0.332
0.233
0.463
0.382
0.801
0.760
0.719
0.254
0.115
0.348
0.306
0.337
0.447
0.284
0.348
0.361
0.307
0.435
0.163
0.395
0.324
0.323
0.259
0.202
0.833
0.609
0.736
0.156
0.166
0.283
0.130
0.263
0.371
0.195
0.325
0.175
0.382
0.315
0.334
0.258
0.412
0.138
0.023
0.303
0.847
0.827
0.790
0.786
0.322
0.379
0.325
0.421
0.208
0.418
0.372
0.348
0.378
0.214
0.222
0.109
0.386
0.324
0.377
0.367
0.281
0.821
0.842
0.773
690
6 Discussion
6.1 Summary of results
Communication plays vital role in Second Life. People
communicate in Second Life virtual environment to perform
social activities, sharing culture and information among the
people around the world. The purpose of professional people to enter in Second Life is to make online revenue. The
instant messaging is secured having high privacy of the
INT
LIN
MR
MRH
SLC
SN
TEC
TEL
TRS
0.322
0.511
0.095
0.0478
0.460
0.236
0.431
0.2489
0.1725
691
ENT
INT
LIN
MR
MRH
SLC
SN
TEC
TEL
TRS
0.970
0.389
0.201
0.314
0.393
0.285
0.386
0.255
0.334
0.262
0.779
0.284
0.253
0.525
0.368
0.530
0.339
0.473
0.404
0.931
0.314
0.301
0.211
0.297
0.152
0.436
0.278
0.836
0.221
0.199
0.230
0.165
0.347
0.211
0.874
0.455
0.451
0.507
0.422
0.528
0.875
0.430
0.358
0.350
0.401
0.824
0.348
0.433
0.419
0.797
0.236
0.348
0.825
0.421
0.813
promote business. Instant messaging is found highly popular and secured to interact with residents. The voice communication is clear, reliable and fast. The communication
system has privacy and security. Some companies are unsuccessful in Second Life due to lack of initial investment
and enough time engagement. They consider Second Life
only as an experimental place and do not take it seriously.
Residents above 30 years old are real business practitioners
and professionals. Below 30 are engaged on social networking and entertainment. Second Life is greatly social and
highly responsible than other social networking websites
such as Facebook, Twitter and Youtube. Second in some
extent was found addictive for few people so they become
careless. The virtual identity of people helps to preserve
their personal information. Quality of products, customer
relationship and after sales service in Second Life was
identified equally important as in real life for business
promotion. Moreover, advertising and consumer traffic has
significant effect for e-business expansion. Thus, virtual
world business has direct influence to raise real world economy. Besides scripting and creating skills experienced users
of Second Life have computer hardware and software skills.
T-statistic
Support
H1: TECSLC
H2: SNSLC
H3: ENSLC
H4: MRSLC
H5: SLCLIN
H6: SLCMRH
H7: SLCINT
H8: SLCTEL
H9: SLCTRS
4.702**
6.547**
1.918*
1.376*
4.684**
10.998**
8.430**
8.506**
8.745**
Yes
Yes
Not supported
Not supported
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
**
692
implication in customer satisfaction, new product development and market success. This study is motivated by a
need to understand the roles of effective communication
in business. Our research model and empirical results
provides the needs of synchronous communication for
organizations, managers and policy makers. This study
has key implications for practice. First, the findings suggest
that Second Life bears high social and business responsibility
than other social networking websites such as Facebook,
Myspace, Twitter and Youtube. Hence it helps to make
decision to companies and individual for real life implication
of their creation. Second, this study shows that the communication is a key part that confers standing and existence of
Second Life.
Appendix
Items
Technological
Social networking
7 Conclusions
Making revenue
Second life
communication
Im satisfied to communicate in SL
Linguistic
Communicate in SL is easy
SL communication is highly effective
I am satisfied communicating in SL
I can send/receive information quickly in SL
Voice communication is important for me than text
SL communication helps me to make decision in
real life
Interactivity
Telepresence
Trust
Communication in SL is secured
Sometimes the communication service in SL suddenly
stops and I have to log off the computer
References
Arakji, R. Y., & Lang, K. R. (2008). Avatar business value analyses: A
method for the evaluation of business value creation in virtual
commerce. Journal of Electronic Commerce Research, 9(3), 207
218.
Barclay, D., Higgins, C., & Thompson, R. (1995). The partial least
squares approach to causal modeling: Personal computer adoption
and use as an illustration. Technology Study, 2, 285309.
BBC News (2006). Security breach hits online world. Retrieved 14th
January 2009, from http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/
5333996.stm
Bennett, J., & Beith, M. (2007). Alternate universe [electronic version],
newsweekly. Retrieved 15th January 2009, from http://www.
newsweek.com/id/32824
Birdwhistell, R. L. (1970). Kinesics and context: Essays on body
motion communication. University of Pennsylvania Publications
in Conduct and Communication p. 338.
Blackwell, R. D., Miniard, P. W., Engel, J. F. (2001). Consumer
behavior. Orlando, FL.
Bollen, K. A. (1989). Structural equations with latent variables. New
York: Wiley.
Bray, D., & Konsynski, B. (2007)v Virtual worlds: Mutli-disciplinary
research opportunities. The Database for Advanced Information
Systems 38(4). Retrieved March 2nd 2009, from http://ssrn.com/
abstract01016485
Bruckman, A., & Jensen, C. (2002). Building virtual communities:
Learning and change in cyberspace (pp. 2133). New York:
Cambridge University Press.
Castranova, E. (2005). Synthetic worlds: The business and culture of
online games. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press.
Castranova, E. (2001). Virtual worlds: A first-hand account of market
and society on the Cyberian frontier. CESinfo Working Paper,
No. 618.
Chambers, J. (2005). The sponsered avatar: Examining the present
reality and future possibilities of advertising in digital games, in
Proceedings of DiGRA 2005 Conference: Changing Views Worlds
in Play.
Chesney, T., Chuah, S., Hoffmann, R. (2007). Virtual world experimentation: An exploratory study. Retrieved 20th March 2008,
from http://ssrn.com/abstract01068225
Chin, W. W. (1998). The partial least squares approach to structural
equation modeling. In G. A. Marcoulides (Ed.), Modern methods
for business research (pp. 295336). Mahwah: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Chin, W. W. (2001). PLS-graph users guide version 3.0. Houston: C.
T. Bauer College of Business, University of Houston.
Claypool, M., & Claypool, K. (2006). Latency and player actions in
online games. Communications of the ACM, 49(11), 4045.
Clemons, E. K. (2009). The complex problem of monetizing virtual
electronic social networks. Decision Support Systems, 47(4),
4656.
Compeau, D. R., Higgins, C. A., & Huff, S. (1999). Social cognitive
theory and individual reactions to computing technology: A
longitudinal study. MIS Quarterly, 23(2), 145158.
Davis, J. P., Steur, K., Pagulayan, R. (2005). A survey method for
assessing perceptions of a game: The consumer playtest in
game design, game studies 5(1). Retrieved May 19th 2007,
from http://www.gamestudies.org
Dubin, R. (1976). Theory building in applied areas, in handbook of
industrial and organizational psychology (pp. 1726). Chicago:
Rand McNally College Publishing Co.
Durlak, J. T. (1987). A typology for interactive media. In M. L.
McLaughlin (Ed.), Communication yearbook 10. Newbury Park:
Sage.
693
Falk, R. F., & Miller, N. B. (1992). A primer for soft modeling. Akron:
The University of Akron.
Fornell, C., & Bookstein, L. (1982). Two structural equation models:
LISREL and PLS applied to consumer exit-voice theory. Journal
of Marketing Research, 19, 440452.
Fornell, C., & Larcker, D. F. (1981). Evaluating structural equations
models with unobservable variables and measurement error. Journal of Marketing Research, 18(1), 3950.
Fteschrin, M., & Lattermann, C. (2008). User acceptance of virtual
world. Journal of Electronic Commerce, 9(3), 231242.
Gartner, Inc. Press Release (2007). Available at: www.gartner.com/it/
page.jsp?id0503861 (accessed 4 March 2009).
Guo, Y., & Barnes, S. (2007). Why people buy virtual items in virtual
worlds with real money. The Data Base for Advances in Information
Systems, 38(4), 6976.
Hair, J. F., Anderson, R. E., Tatham, R. L., & Black, W. C. (1998).
Multivariate data analysis with readings. Englewood Cliffs:
Prentice Hall.
Heckel, P. (1991). The elements of friendly software design (new ed.).
Alameda: SYBEX.
Held, R. M., & Durlach, N. I. (1992). Telepresence and presence.
Teleoperators and Virtual Environments, 1(1), 102112.
Hemp, P. (2006). Avatar-based marketing. Harvard Business Review,
84(6), 4857.
Hoffman, D. L., & Novak, T. P. (1996). Marketing in hypermedia
computer-mediated environments: Conceptual foundations.
Journal of Marketing, 60(3), 5068.
Holsapple, C. W., Pakath, R., & Sasidharan, S. (2005). A website
interface design framework for the cognitively impaired: A study
in the context of Alzheimers disease. Journal of Electronic
Commerce Research, 6(4), 291303.
Hunter, D., & Lastowka, F. (2005). The laws of the virtual worlds.
California Law Review, 92(1).
Hustad, E., & Teigland, R. (2008). Implementing social networking
media and web 2.0 in multinationals: Implications for knowledge
management. Proceedings of The 9th European Conference on
Knowledge Management, 323331.
Jiming, W., Peng, T. C., & Rao, S. (2008). Why they enjoy virtual
game worlds? an empirical investigation. Journal of Electronic
Commerce Research, 9, 219230.
Kevin, S. L. (2007). The online identity and deviant behavior: Who are
you in MMORPG? USA: Carnegie Mellon University.
Kim, K. H., Park, J. Y., Kim, D. Y., Moon, H. I., & Chun, H. C. (2002).
E-lifestyle and motives to use online games. Irish Marketing
Review, 15(2), 7177.
Kleeberger, J. (2002). Online-gaming as a marketing and sales catalyst.
Switzerland: Department of Media and Communication, University
of St. Gallen.
Laurel, B. (1986). Interface as mimesis. In D. N. Norman & S. W.
Draper (Eds.), User-centered system design (pp. 6786). Hillsdale:
Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Leimster, J. M., Pascal, S., Helmut K. (2004). Success factors of virtual
communities from the perspective of members and operators: An
empirical study, 2004. 37th Hawai International Conference on
System Sciences.
Leo, S. W., & Kim, J. Y. (2005). The comparison of online game
experiences by players in games of lineage and everquest:
Role play vs. consumption. Digra conference: Changing views- worlds
in play.
Lohmoller, J. (1989). Latent variable path modeling with partial least
squares. Heidelberg: Physica-Verlag.
Lowry, P. B., Robert, T. L., Romano, N. C., Cheney, P. D., & Hightower,
R. T. (2006). The impact of group size and social presence on smallgroup communication. Small Group Research, 3796, 631661.
Lucia, A. D., Francese, R., Passero, I., & Tortora, G. (2008).
Development and evolution of a virtual campus on second
694
life: The case of second DMI. Computers in Education, 52,
220233.
Lui, T. W., Piccoli, G., & Ives, B. (2007). Marketing strategies in
virtual worlds. The Data Base for Advances in Information
Systems, 38(4), 7780.
Manly, B. F. (1994). Factor analysis. In B. F. J. Manly (Ed.),
Multivariate statistical methods. London: Chapman and
Hall.
March, F., & Christoph, L. (2008). User acceptance of virtual world.
Journal of Electronic Commerce, 9(3), 231242.
Markus, M. L. (1994). Electronic mail as the medium of managerial
choice. Organization Science, 5(4), 502527.
Messinger, P. R., Stroulia, E., Lyons, K., Bone, M., Niud, R. H.,
Smirnova, K., & Perelgute, S. (2009). Virtual worlds-past, present
and future: New direction in social computing. Decision Support
Systems, 47, 204228.
Miller, K. (2005). Communication theories: Perspectives, processes,
and contexts (2nd ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill.
Nass, C., & Moon, Y. (2000). Machines and mindlessness: Social
responses to computers. Journal of Social Issues, 56(1), 81103.
Norman, D. N. (1988). The design of everyday things. New York:
Doubleday.
OReilly, T. (2005). What is web 2.0? [web log post]. Retrieved June
23rd 2011, from http://oreilly.com/web2/archive/what-is-web-20.
html
Peter, R., Mark, B., Aukje, T., & Marcia, L. (2008). Face to face with
white rabbit: Sharing ideas in second life. New Zealand: Victoria
University of Wellington.
Rafaeli, S., & Sudweeks, F. (1994). Interactivity on the nets, information
systems and human communication technology divisions, in ICA
Annual Conference (Sydney, Australia, 1994).
Reeves, B., & Nass, C. I. (1996). The media equation: How people
treat computers, television and new media real people and places.
Stanford: CSLI Publications.
Riva, G. (1997). Virtual reality as assessment tool in psychology:
Virtual reality in neuro-psycho-physiology, Netherlands.
International Journal o f Information Management, 17(4),
261270.
Roche, E. (2007). Setting the research agenda. The Database for
Advances in Information Systems, 38(4), 710.
Sheridan, T. B. (1992). Musings on Telepresence and Virtual Presence,
1(1), 120126.
Social Research Foundation. (2008). Second life survey. New York:
Social Research Foundation.
Sundar, S. S., & Nass, C. (2000). Source orientation in humancomputer interaction: Programmer, networker, or independent
social actor? Communication Research, 27(6), 683703.
Steve, H., Sharon, G., Miko, A., et al. (2008). Collaboration
opportunities in second life: Collective experiences (pp. 114119).
Australia: University of Western Sydney.
Talamasca, A. (2006). Second life addiction: Do you have a problem?
retrieved June 12th 2007, from http://www.secondlifeinsider.com/
2006/10/13/sl-addiction-do-you-have-aproblem/
Teltzrow, M., Meyer, B., & Lenz, H. J. (2007). Multi-channel
consumer perceptions. Journal of Electronic Commerce Research,
8(1), 1831.
Valck, K. D., Bruggen, G. H., & Wierenga, B. (2009). Virtual
communities: A marketing perspective. Decision Support System,
47, 185203.
Vedrashko, I. (2006). Advertising in computer games. Cambridge:
Department of Comparative and Media Studies, Massachusetts
Institute of Technology.
Dr. Gajendra Sharma has completed PhD in Management Information System from Harbin Institute of Technology, China in July 2011 at
the department of Management Science and Engineering. He is now
pursuing post doctoral research on online social networks and its ethics
in Dalian University of Technology, China. Moreover, he has been
working at Liaoning Technical University as an Associate Professor
since September 2011. He has also been associated with Himalaya
College of Engineering (affiliated to Tribhuvan University), Nepal as a
visiting professor. He worked as a Campus Chief of the college from
2005 to 2008.His research interests include Management Information
System, E-commerce, online social networks and e-governance.
Dr. Ye Qiang is a professor of Information Systems in the School of
Management at Harbin Institute of Technology. He had worked in the
Mccombs School of Business in University of Texas at Austin and the
School of Hotel & Tourism Management in Hong Kong Polytechnic
University as post doctoral fellow and visiting scholar. His research
interests include Electronic Commerce and Business Intelligence. Prof.
Ye had published more than twenty papers on journals including Decision
Support Systems, International Journal of Hospitality Management, et
al. One of his papers received the best paper award in 2008 PACIS. Prof.
Ye is Associate Editor of Journal of Electronic Commerce Research and
Area Editor of Electronic Commerce Research and Applications.
Dr. Sun Wenjun is a professor at the Department of Management
Sciences and Engineering, School of Management, Harbin Institute of
Technology. Dr. Sun got his BS from Beijing University and a Ph.D.
degree from Carnegie Mellon University. Before joining HIT in 2006, Dr.
Sun had worked in the IT industry in the Silicon Valley and had extensive
experiences in applying IT to a myriad of real-world problems. His
academic interests include Management Information Systems (MIS),
E-Commerce, social networks and in a general sense the application of
Information Technologies to the public and business domains.
Lu Qi is a doctoral candidate of Management Science & Engineering
in the School of Management at Harbin Institute of Technology. He has
worked as a research assistant in School of Hotel and Tourism Management at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University in 2011. His research interests include E-commerce and Information application in
enterprise.