If your avatar looks different from you, perhaps in some ideal way, how does that make you behave? The Today Show profiles VHIL virtual reality exercise research.
Jeremy Bailenson's research suggests that the qualities you acquire online — whether it's confidence or insecurity — can spill over and change your conduct in the real world.
VHIL research shows that what people do in virtual reality doesn't always stay in virtual reality. Issue also features an opinion piece by Jeremy Bailenson on the benefits of virtual classrooms.
Maybe virtual reality isn't just a game anymore. Maybe its a way to build a better you. VHIL researchers are testing whether avatars can tell us something deeper about human behavior.