[Foundation-l] Deindividuation and Wikipedia.

[Anirudh Bhati]

A very interesting perspective from David McCraney who blogs at "You
are not so smart" <www.youarenotsosmart.com>.

http://youarenotsosmart.com/2011/02/10/deindividuation/

"Deindividuation pervades virtual worlds, and the results are mixed.
Download “Second Life” and take a stroll. Sooner or later you’ll end
up in a sex dungeon. Play any game on Xbox Live, and someone will
eventually claim to have carnal knowledge of your mother. You can
thank anonymity and deindividuation for both. The comments under a
Youtube video may make you weep for the species, but just click over
to the entry on the humanzee in Wikipedia for restoration. It is
consistent with the world outside the machine. The same force which
built and maintained concentration camps also pushed soldiers onto
Omaha Beach."

Some good lessons for Wikimedia. :)

"Deindividuation takes away your inhibitions as well as your sense of
self and fear of accountability, but this isn’t necessarily a bad
thing. The same force which brings otherwise rational people to loot
and vandalize and invade Poland can also lead to prosocial behaviors.
If you are surrounded by positive cues, deindividuation could lead you
to work harder in an exercise class, or pitch in at a homeless
shelter, or help build a house. People who forget their sense of self
and work together to save a life or search for a missing child show
deindividuation is a neutral force of the human will. When 4Chan or
Digg or Reddit assemble into an anonymous collective to exact revenge
it often ends in actual justice. Once deindividuation kicks in, the
cues from the environment shape the resulting behavior. The norms of
the mob, good or evil, replace the norms of everyday life."

Yours sincerely,

Anirudh Bhati

00 91 9328712208
Skype: anirudhsbh