1603 Church St., San Francisco, CA 94131
I’m presenting a program on “Counseling Internet and Online Issues” at the 2nd Virtual Conference on Counseling — in Second Life! I’ll be talking about historical context, basic psychological features of cyberspace, and applicable examples of situations. It’s next Wednesday, 9/15, at 3 pm Pacific/6 pm Eastern, at the Counselor Education in Second Life center SLURL Port Dervon 44, 65, 26. It’s free. Please stop by!
A recent study by two psychologists from the University of Amsterdam looks at the evolution of online discourse amongst teenagers over the last couple of decades. As they delve into how the saturation of Internet access and the emergence of online social networks has encouraged teens to add an online element to their existing face-to-face relationships, they discuss the nature of these interactions:
email correspondence
This week’s Virtual Conference on Counseling in Second Life offered a wide variety of topics, not to mention the novelty of a professional conference conducted entirely in a virtual world. I noticed a striking theme that seemed to run through many of the presentations. Here are some examples:
I’ve been interested in the nature of online interactions since long before I became a therapist. In the mid-90’s, I found myself working in technical support for a media company near San Francisco. Increasingly, I had been called upon to acquaint various employees with this new communication fad called The Internet. On one occasion, I was teaching a mid-level manager about online discussion groups around common interests, and we found a relevant chat room.
Managing relationships and emotions in the 21st century can be bewildering. Visit my blog for my thoughts about mental health, relationships — online and face-to-face — and coping with everyday stressors.