Virtual intimacy: Propensity for physical contact between avatars in an online virtual environment

Physical contact in human interactions conveys important social cues and plays a role in health and well-being. Although popular social technologies are limited in transmitting the physical aspects of human contact, avatars in online multi-user virtual environments can be used to visualize the physical characteristics of social interactions. Naturalistic observations of physical contact between avatars were performed in IMVU, an online virtual chat room platform where users control the physical interactions of their avatars by selecting among available animated poses. A third of the available poses examined across different user-generated chat rooms enabled physical contact between avatars, but only about one in ten of the avatars observed used these intimate poses, most commonly when dancing or sitting. While more female avatars were observed in non-intimate behavior, the number of males and female avatars observed in intimate interactions was relatively equivalent, with most intimate dyads being of heterosexual composition. Engagement in intimate interactions was not related to the presence of other avatars or their total number. The findings provide insight into the propensity of users to engage in physical contact via their avatars and have implications for the development of social technologies that facilitate virtual intimacy.