Virtual-self Identity Construal in Online Video Games: A Repertory Grid Study Protocol

Abstract

The aim of this project is to study the role that online videogames play in the way people build their identities. More specifically, the project is intended to study how people use online videogames and virtual avatars to explore alternative identities. It is possible for people to manifest entirely different versions of themselves through their virtual characters. Sometimes, those alternative identities may be a projection of what players consider ideal versions of themselves. Several variables may strengthen or hinder this capacity to project the ideal self onto a customizable “virtual self”. Some of these factors are inherent to the individual, while others may be more related to the specific game they play. The repertory grid technique will be used to explore online videogame players’ construct systems and to understand their need to explore alternative identities through their videogame characters. Other instruments will also be administrated to measure the degree of immersion that game players experience, to determine which aspects of play are the most appealing to them, and to gather data on their degree of subjective psychological well-being, all in order to assess how these variables, in addition to the others extracted from the repertory grid, may affect this identity exploration.