Social Constructionist Perspective: Virtual Walls

1). Consider the social constructionist perspective. How do we "build worlds" through communication? Think of some ideas we talk about in our culture that may not exist in other cultures. How do these concepts contribute to our happiness of success (or the lack of these) in our culture?

So far as the social constructionist perspective goes, what comes to my mind when thinking of constructing world views is the law enforcement culture. John G Stratton, a police psychologist, wrote in his book Police Passages (1984) that police officers construct a worldview of an “us vs. them” mentality as a result from the volatile and hostile encounters they have with citizens who, are most of the time, at a time of crisis in their lives.

The nature of police work leads these officers to build emotional walls, and to detach themselves emotionally so as not to feel the immense grief and tragedy they witness on a daily basis. What a citizen might see on the outside is a callous and cynical officer, but under the surface is a survival mechanism developed out of necessity.

While this concept is not exclusive to our western culture, there are ideas and concepts of communication that are. I am referring to the communication phenomena of virtual realities. The game, Second Life, offers users a chance to live a life through avatars, or characters developed by the user. Through this venue real life relationships have been built and even corporations have set up meetings via their avatars meeting at a spot in this virtual world.

While this technology may very well have instilled feelings of popularity, inclusiveness, and even happiness to millions in America, there are of course people who have learned to use them negatively. People who use their avatars to sexually harass other avatars is an issue that is still being confronted by Linden Lab, the company who developed Second Life. This leads one to conclude that even this modern communication technology can be used in a positive and a negative manner.