Real-time multisensory social interactions (RMSIs) between people are at the center of the metaverse, a new computer-mediated environment consisting of virtual “worlds” in which people act and communicate with each other in real-time via avatars. This research investigates whether RMSIs in the metaverse, when accessed through virtual-reality headsets, can generate more value for interactants in terms of interaction outcomes (interaction performance, evaluation, and emotional responses) than those on the two-dimensional (2D) internet (e.g., Zoom meetings). We combine theoretical logic with extensive field-experimental probes (which support the value-creation potential of the virtual-reality metaverse, but contradict its general superiority) to develop and refine a framework of how RMSIs in the metaverse versus on the 2D internet affect interaction outcomes through interactants’ intermediate conditions. The refined framework serves as foundation for a research roadmap on RMSIs in the metaverse, in which we highlight the critical roles of specific mediating and moderating forces along with interactional formats for future investigations of the metaverse and also name key business areas and societal challenges that deserve scholarly attention.

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A long-standing debate in atheist and secular humanist circles in the U.S. has been whether organized secularists should embrace a broader political agenda or steer clear of such commitments. This debate was brought front-and-center during the political ferment of the 2016 Democratic primary campaigns, where we saw the emergence of an outspoken secular political candidate in the person of Bernie Sanders. Yet atheist leaders and publications showed minimal, if any, interest in the campaign. Such leaders assumed that atheism does not include a set of socio-political markers that sets it off from other movements; it is mainly a science-and reason-based philosophy challenging belief in the supernatural that can be adapted to a wide range of political orientations. We find this view increasingly reflected among both atheist and secular humanist leaders and publications, especially in the new atheist movement, which drew a high proportion of atheists interested in science (Cragun 2014). This view also squares with the finding that as a secular population grows, it increasingly reflects the demographics of the broader population (Voas 2015). Evidence of this may be seen in the recent finding that the "nones," or those who do not identify with any religion, do not necessarily represent a political bloc (Kurtzleben 2015).In regard to social movements, it may be difficult to divorce atheism from social and political worldviews, or to argue that atheism is merely a lack of belief and does not carry values and beliefs of its own. Recent studies suggest class/economic-based atheist critiques, which identify