There must be tremendous opportunities for sociologists and psychologists in studying net behavior. I wish I were in that field myself, since I find it fascinating. In 3d the negative consequences for bad behavior are so much worse (for most of us) that we quickly shape up abnormal behavior, but on the net, for a few people (who obviously really need societal controls), the societal stigma isn't there, or is even acting as a reinforcer, rather than a preventative, of anti-social behavior.
I agree with you that we all, internally, contain a range of selves- and many of us are constantly experimenting with which self we let out, but again, we use the responses of those around us in a positive way to shape what we show of ourselves. What fascinates me are people who are so destructive in their use of self that they show the negative frequently, or even exclusively, at great consequence to themselves (at least to hear them talk, since many of them seem to take negative reactions on the net "seriously"), but who do not, or cannot, change, and who blame the negative consequences on everyone but themselves.
It would be so much fun to study that. |
