Virtual Greg

This blog has two purposes:

• to think out loud about issues concerning my PhD, and hopefully get feedback
• to stay in touch with colleagues and family while researching overseas

My PhD is about how people communicate using, or within, online virtual worlds. My focus is on comparing communication in two different media: text chat and voice-over-IP. I have looked at communication in team shooter games, massively multiplayer games, and Second Life. I began the PhD in 2005 and should wrap it up in 2009.

Between July and October 2008 I will be a visiting researcher with the PlayOn group at the Palo Alto Research Centre. This is where the world’s leading research in my field is carried out, so it’s a great opportunity for me to improve my skills and meet colleagues. It will also be a long stretch away from the folks back home, and I’ll use this blog to stay in touch with them.

During the past few years I’ve noticed a few PhD candidates writing blogs about their candidature. A recent article on this phenomenon in AJETS convinced me I should do it too. (Blogging PhD Candidature: Revealing the Pedagogy, by Mary-Helen Ward and Sandra West). I believe strongly in the thinking power of groups, and I’d love to see the PhD process opened up in this way. Of course this will only happen if people use the blog format to post comments and turn the candidates’ monologues into discussions. So if you find any of the material in here interesting and want to comment on it, please do.