Collaboration in Virtual Worlds

Researcher:	Dr. Paul Wallace
Collaborators:	Dr. Stephen Kane, University of Guam
Dates:	2007 to present
Publications:	2 journal articles, 2 conference papers
Funding:	1 grant (US$5,000)

Self-Representation & Collaboration

In virtual world classrooms there exist differences in willingness to collaborate with avatars representing various ethnic groups, as well as with non-human avatars.

Recent Manuscripts

Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference (SITE) 2010
Mar. 29 to Apr. 2, 2010 :: San Diego, CA USA
1 paper presentation / 1 poster session accepted

The World Conference on E-Learning in Corporate, Government, Healthcare & Higher Education (E-Learn) 2010
Oct. 18 to 22, 2010 :: Orlando, FL, USA
1 paper presentation / 1 workshop planned

2010 International Conference on Current Trends and Challenges in Education
Oct. 22 to 23, 2010 :: Tumon, Guam
1 paper presentation accepted

EDUCAUSE Learning Initiatives Annual Meeting 2011
Feb. 14 to 16, 2011 :: Washington, DC, USA
1 presentation planned

Despite the growing use of 3D virtual worlds in education, very little research has been done to investigate how self-representation in these environments impacts collaboration in multicultural learning groups. My research in this area has found significant differences between willingness to collaborate with avatars representing various ethnic groups, as well as with non-human avatars exhibiting anthropomorphic and zoopomorphic features.