An implicit assumption of the objective indicators approach to ‘social indicators’ is that one’s health, physical environment, quality of housing and other material circumstances are valid indicators of the quality of life. We are assuming that quality of life here relates to the single ‘real’ identity alone. As cyborgs – which you probably are with your iphones, augmented reality apps and mmorpg toons – I wonder how we begin to look at cyber-social indicators.
How do we work out if the metaverse is happy? How can we tell if an avatar is feeling a bit low – apart from their mana or health bar? What are the social indicators needed to measure the social-media landscape, and what questions would provide more insight than of ‘how many users have xyz’ blah.
Do RTs make you happy? If we all get our RT quota, does it make us less or more snarky. Why do we change our avatar appearance … does the metaverse make use actually feel better.
If so, would kids feel happier at school if they brought their avatars?
Playable 