The psychology of digital technology
To learn for the exam:
- Slides weeks 1-6
- Notes week 1, 2, 4 and 6
- Hendricks, LaVelle Cyber Bullying NFJCA V1 N1 2012
- Article: The knowledge and prevalence of cyberbullying in a college sample
- Notes: The presentation of self (article and slides)
Cyberpsychology
What is cyberpsychology?
- Cyberpsychology is the study of the human mind and behaviour in the context of human-
technology interaction.
- It encompasses all psychological phenomena that are associated with or affected by
emerging technology.
- This field explores human interactions with other emerging technologies, including the
internet, mobile computing, mobile phones, games consoles, virtual reality, digital media and
any other technology, which has demonstrated an ability to alter human behaviours.
- It considers the impact of evolving trends, such as technological convergence, on individuals.
- Cyberpsychology also examines human interactions with less ubiquitous technologies, such
as cyborgs and artificial intelligence.
Cyberspace as Psychological Space
- The term "cyberspace" is often overly commercialized
- Many web users will describe their experience as "traveling" or "going someplace.“
- Spatial metaphors - such as "worlds," "domains," or "rooms" are common in articulating
online activities
- On a deeper psychological level, users often describe how their computer is an extension of
their mind and personality
- In psychoanalytic terms, computers and cyberspace may become a type of "transitional
space" that is an extension of the individual's intrapsychic world.
- It may be experienced as an intermediate zone between self and other that is part self and
part other.
- As they read on their screen the e-mail, newsgroup, or chat message written by an internet
comrade, some people feel as if their mind is merged or blended with that of the other.
- Under less than optimal conditions, people use this psychological space to simply vent or act
out their fantasies and the frustrations, anxieties, and desires that fuel those fantasies.
- Imagine no more keyboards and achy hands. No more eye strain from the glare of the
screen. Just visualize the message you want to send, followed by your send command, and
poof! Your email is transmitted to our network for quick delivery to its destination.
The Online Disinhibition Effect “Shifting to an online identity”
- It's well known that people say and do things in cyberspace that they wouldn't ordinarily say
or do in the face-to-face world.
- They loosen up, feel more uninhibited, express themselves more openly. Researchers call
this the "disinhibition effect."
- They reveal secret emotions, fears, wishes. Or they show unusual acts of kindness and
generosity. We may call this benign disinhibition.
1
To learn for the exam:
- Slides weeks 1-6
- Notes week 1, 2, 4 and 6
- Hendricks, LaVelle Cyber Bullying NFJCA V1 N1 2012
- Article: The knowledge and prevalence of cyberbullying in a college sample
- Notes: The presentation of self (article and slides)
Cyberpsychology
What is cyberpsychology?
- Cyberpsychology is the study of the human mind and behaviour in the context of human-
technology interaction.
- It encompasses all psychological phenomena that are associated with or affected by
emerging technology.
- This field explores human interactions with other emerging technologies, including the
internet, mobile computing, mobile phones, games consoles, virtual reality, digital media and
any other technology, which has demonstrated an ability to alter human behaviours.
- It considers the impact of evolving trends, such as technological convergence, on individuals.
- Cyberpsychology also examines human interactions with less ubiquitous technologies, such
as cyborgs and artificial intelligence.
Cyberspace as Psychological Space
- The term "cyberspace" is often overly commercialized
- Many web users will describe their experience as "traveling" or "going someplace.“
- Spatial metaphors - such as "worlds," "domains," or "rooms" are common in articulating
online activities
- On a deeper psychological level, users often describe how their computer is an extension of
their mind and personality
- In psychoanalytic terms, computers and cyberspace may become a type of "transitional
space" that is an extension of the individual's intrapsychic world.
- It may be experienced as an intermediate zone between self and other that is part self and
part other.
- As they read on their screen the e-mail, newsgroup, or chat message written by an internet
comrade, some people feel as if their mind is merged or blended with that of the other.
- Under less than optimal conditions, people use this psychological space to simply vent or act
out their fantasies and the frustrations, anxieties, and desires that fuel those fantasies.
- Imagine no more keyboards and achy hands. No more eye strain from the glare of the
screen. Just visualize the message you want to send, followed by your send command, and
poof! Your email is transmitted to our network for quick delivery to its destination.
The Online Disinhibition Effect “Shifting to an online identity”
- It's well known that people say and do things in cyberspace that they wouldn't ordinarily say
or do in the face-to-face world.
- They loosen up, feel more uninhibited, express themselves more openly. Researchers call
this the "disinhibition effect."
- They reveal secret emotions, fears, wishes. Or they show unusual acts of kindness and
generosity. We may call this benign disinhibition.
1
