Hi,
I am a PhD student from the University of Kent doing research about Virtual worlds (Online 3D or 2D Virtual environments populated by large number of people (World of Warcraft, Second Life). The focus of my research is to explore how to design and use virtual worlds to support healthy aging for older people (age 60+) .Virtual worlds seems to hold much promise in providing social engagement and support, but it seems most virtual world today are designed for teenagers and young adults,excluding the group of users who can truly benefit from them.
We are trying to figure out how to design virtual worlds to become supportive communities for old people. In order to accomplish this, input from seniors who use virtual worlds is vital. If you're over 60 years old, we would very much appreciate if you could help us by giving 30-40 minutes of your time for a short interview (either by messenger software like yahoo,MSN or in Second Life). We would ask general questions such as, how you got to know virtual worlds. If you would like to help us or have any questions, please contact Cramblet Rumsford (inworld) or e-mail me at [email]ps297@kent.ac.uk[/email].