The Play of Internet Communication Chapter 5 Shedletsky & Aitken Human Communication on the Internet

A STARTING POINT 4 The Internet can magnify, elaborate, and enhance certain elements of human communication; 4 Play is one of those elements; 4 Play applies to all functions of the Internet, from entertainment to news, instruction and persuasion;

The Internet and Our Minds 4 The Web encourages us to think, use our imaginations; 4 New technology, the Web high on that list, facilitates our imaginative and playful thinking; 4 The Internet facilitates our pretending;

How the Internet can Intensify Communication (Inter)Play 4 Interplay is used to mean an interaction, which can be transformative, entertaining, interesting, or light-hearted; 4 Interplay is used to include play, to include the idea of feelings of pleasure as a motivator;

Postulates of Play on the Internet 4 Internet play is for itself. It serves internal goals; 4 Internet play co-exists inside and outside the scope of ordinary life; 4 Internet play operates without fixed boundaries of time and space, although the play may operate within Internet rules; 4 Internet play is pliable. The Internet play can completely absorb the player or take on a life of its own;

Play and Identity 4 Turkle (1995) writes about play as integral to the construction of identity on the Internet; 4 Play can have real effects on people in their real lives;

How Does Play Function on the Internet 4 Seven types of play in Internet communication: –Imaginative play like a child –Identity role-playing –Interplay with the self or other –Play like actors in a play –Games for destruction –Playful work –The fun of something new

Seven Types of Play in Internet Communication 4 Imaginative play like a child –Circulating humor, jokes, having fun, playing games; 4 Identity role-playing –Experimentation with the self, pretending, extending 4 Interplay with the self or other –Internet users approach their communication activity with a sense of playfulness –Users seek ways to use the Internet that are pleasureable

Seven Types of Play in Internet Communication 4 Play like theater –Creation of an imaginary space in which people can pretend; 4 Games for destruction –Destructive activities on the Internet, such as gossip, transmission of viruses, stalking, violent videogames and terrorism;

Seven Types of Play in Internet Communication 4 Playful work –The Internet intensifies the juxtaposition of play and work; –Teachers use popular culture to make serious academic points;

Seven Types of Play in Internet Communication 4 The fun of something new –Computer users experience a mix of frustration and fun; –Perhaps overcoming the frustration is what is so satisfying;

Play vs. Lying 4 Lying –Intending to communicate claims and the belief that the sender believes in what he/she is saying; 4 Playing –Intending for the receiver to believe that the sender does not believe in the claims he/she is making, that in fact they want the receiver to understand what is implied by this falsehood;

Play of Computer Games 4 The effect of playing computer video games: –Results are mixed; 4 People are playing many types of games online: –Casino games, fantasy football, trivia, solitaire, and others;

Playful Metaphors 4 Discussion groups use metaphors to refer to activities they prefer not to state explicitly or activities they imagine; 4 The Internet itself is characterized in metaphorical terms, e.g., the information superhighway; 4 Metaphor, along with other elements of language, intensifies imagination and creativity, adding to the characteristic of play on the Internet;

Internet and Communication Principles 4 Internet communication is a process; 4 Adapting to the Internet will increase communication effectiveness; 4 Communication is irreversible; 4 Internet meanings are in people; 4 No one can experience totally effective communication on the Internet;

Some Paradoxes of Human Interplay on the Internet PlayWork Use cognitive collaborationFail to think for oneself Connect with othersIsolated and alone Play with new ideas/open-mindedPolarize people Face fearGain new fear Enjoy free service to the InternetInvest enormous business and social values, time, skills and money Have individual funAchieve global significance