Getting Acquainted in Second Life: Human Agent Interactions in Virtual Environments

The paper investigates human agent interactions in virtual environments like Second Life. As interactions in such environments are inherently social, the agent should be able to participate in social interaction rituals like getting acquainted when meeting someone for the first time. The differences between these rituals in real life and in Second Life are analyzed. Different rule sets for each version of the ritual have been developed and the performance of the different sets is compared in interactions with users in Second Life.