The Effects of Avatars' Age on Older Adults' Self-Disclosure and Trust

Abstract

Older adults are increasingly interacting with other people online via virtual avatars, yet little is known about how avatars affect older adults' behavior. This study examines how interacting avatars' age affects older adult's self-disclosure and trust in a relation-building context. Previous studies have found that users can take on behaviors consistent with characteristics of the avatars. In social interactions, people also assess their avatar in relation to other avatars for similarity or differences. We conducted a 2 (self-avatar: old vs. young) × 2 (other's avatar: old vs. young) experiment with older-adult participants aged 60+ (n = 95). The findings show that using younger avatars did not increase self-disclosure. However, the older-adult participants disclosed more information when their avatar's age matched their partner avatar's age (i.e., old to old, young to young). They also trust their partners more when the interacting avatars shared similar age. This study provides theoretical insights into the role of avatars in online relationship-building and extends our understanding of the avatar effects on older adults.

Interrogating Social Virtual Reality as a Communication Medium for Older Adults

“…Samuel's comments about the contribution embodied avatars could make in encouraging older adults to reengage with social support provide evidence of the important role that social VR could play in improving wellbeing. Research is increasingly demonstrating the positive role that embodied avatars can play in reducing anxiety [5] and establishing trust [37]. Our participants' comments provide first-hand accounts from older adults demonstrating their belief that such interventions could prove valuable for them and their peers.…”

“…The use of embodied avatars in social VR likewise presents opportunities to address Brewer and Piper's call for communication platforms that support self-expression and embrace complex, multifaceted older adult identities [11]. Avatars can also address older adults' concerns for privacy and anonymity by allowing them to choose how they wish to be viewed by others [37]. However, despite authors acknowledging that social VR "will vastly expand" social media opportunities [59, p.128], there has been no research evaluating immersive social VR as a communication medium for older adults.…”

Self-concept clarity as a predictor of self-disclosure in romantic relationships

“…Essentially the same conclusion was reached in studies by Desjarlais et al (2015), Dindia (2000), Himelstein and Lubin (1966), Jourard (1958), Pedersen and Breglio (1968), Rivenbark (1971), and Yu (2014), and this gender difference in self-disclosure seems to be independent of personality (Pedersen and Breglio, 1968). With regard to the effect of the participants’ age on self-disclosure, the evidence is more limited and mixed, with the results appearing to vary across different contexts and with different targets (Jourard, 1961; Lee et al, 2018; Sinha, 1972). It is abundantly evident, however, that both gender and age are statistically significant covariates of both self-esteem and self-concept clarity (Csank & Conway, 2004; Lodi-Smith & Roberts, 2010; Lodi-Smith et al, 2017; Major et al, 1999; Twenge & Campbell, 2001), findings which themselves provide ample justification for including these demographic variables as covariates in the various analyses reported here.…”

Quantifying the Effects of Age-Related Stereotypes on Online Social Conformity

“…Moreover, it is likely that the effects of age and related stereotypes observed in this study would be further heightened in real online group settings that use richer user representations such as real photographs (e.g., social media, online forums [55,68]) and highly anthropomorphic (human-like) avatars (e.g., gaming platforms, virtual worlds [34,50]). Therefore, we urge designers of online group platforms to reconsider if including user cues is of value to the core purpose of the platform to minimise susceptibility of users to unwanted social pressures.…”

“…Similarly, despite the absence of face-to-face interactions, peer age has often been used to gauge peer competency and trustworthiness in online groups [30,50,57]. For instance, in a recent study investigating the impact of borrowers' personal features (e.g., age, gender, physical attractiveness) on online peer-to-peer lending decisions, authors indicate that users actively inferred age of peers through their photographs, and considered assumed age a reliable indicator of peer competency to repay the loan [30].…”