Our identity in the Metaverse
By Dr. Martina Mendola & Dr. Sabrina Anjara
Whether you love it or hate it, consider it hype or scam, the Metaverse is taking shape now. The Metaverse market is projected to surpass $50 billion by 2026 and while doing so, change how we work, socialize, create and own, through realizing a seamless integration of our digital and physical lives.
Understandably, anything immediately to do with money is given more attention and R&D resources. Consider how the Metaverse entered the public consciousness the moment Facebook rebranded to Meta. In the same vein, digital identity dominates conversations around identity in the metaverse.
Digital ID is the key to Metaverse transactions, and it is likely that regulations around know-your-customers (KYC) and anti-money laundering (AML) will permeate to virtual spaces. The European Digital Identity Project is an example of massive public sector investment in this area. On December 5th, the World Economic Forum published an article on the need to regulate digital identity in the Metaverse.
The Metaverse, however, is not just a space for digital property ownership and exchange. It is also the space where immersive virtual experiences take place. In fact, the latter is what the Metaverse is all about in the contemporary public imagination. To the mainstream, the Metaverse is first and foremost a place for entertainment and play.
There is no doubt that currently virtual worlds also embody the flaws of the physical world we live in. Stories of assaults, Ponzi schemes and neo-feudalism in virtual spaces are many. If the Metaverse was to compete for people’s time and wallet share, makers and designers of virtual experiences need a more holistic view of identity.
Identity is the psychological, physical, spiritual self that makes one person a unique being. Identity also manifests in physical or virtual appearance, accents, choice of words, gait, preferences and pretty much everything that can be used as a basis for discrimination. It also manifests in prosocial or antisocial behaviors.
More importantly, identity is a gargantuan word. It seems to loom from above, complicating every conversation about technology which is supposed to be neutral. It could feel too human, too philosophical, too complicated.
Because it is complicated. Try going to a conference on identity and, like us, you will find academics arguing for hours trying to agree on a shared definition. Cultural theorist Mieke Bal defines identity as a ‘travelling concept’ — generative precisely because it gets richer in meaning every time it crosses a disciplinary boundary. Never fixed, identity researchers must deal with its multilayered nature at every turn.
At the same time, identity feels simplistic. Everyone has an identity, and therefore the need for expertise in the psychological and philosophical nature of identity could be easily dismissed as an unnecessary expense. Well, the utilitarian argument for social science is that it prevents bad decision making. If that is worth something to you, read on.
Deconstructing Identity
Given our academic pedigrees, we have our own disagreements on the definition of identity and what it constitutes. Sabrina is an organizational psychologist and Martina recently completed a PhD in Cultural Studies. Over an afternoon, and in preparation for an academic talk on identity at Trinity College Dublin, we catalogued 11 theories which are relevant for understanding identity expression in the Metaverse (find them in the Glossary below). We came up with the concept of the Identity Seedling to illustrate how these different theories essentially refer to various parts of the same complex concept.
Like a seedling, identity changes over time, but at the core it remains the same. The idea of a stable part and a changing part was introduced by philosopher Paul Ricoeur, who refers to a ‘idem-identity’ that is persistent and unchanging, and an ‘ipse-identity’ that changes as we grow. Together, they allow us to remain ourselves, while also changing beliefs, dispositions, and appearance.
Theories from psychology and cultural studies tell us that some aspects of identity are more visible — above ground — like our physical appearance, while others are deeply hidden in the unconscious, like our personal values. The Identity Seedling considers all these aspects in an accessible way.
How to use the seedling
Take for example Martina. She wants to buy a new dress to wear for a 40th party: she hasn’t been to a lot of parties since the pandemic and really misses going out. She knows she wants something comfortable, that doesn’t need to be ironed (she doesn’t like ironing) and made from a nice fabric. She wants to feel good in it while staying true to her fashion style. She also wants to buy something sustainably made.
A seemingly trivial choice is strongly influenced by our identity on multiple levels. Looking at the seedling, it is apparent how fashion choices (physical appearance) speak about someone’s individuality. Martina might not be conscious of the fact that her clothing sends signals to indicate the social role she wants to be known for: in this case, she doesn’t want professional attire, but something to show off at a party.
Her sense of belonging to a certain cultural group might influence what she feels appropriate to wear, and her belief in sustainable consumerism will be coherently expressed by her purchase. Overall, if that dress doesn’t align with Martina’s self-image — what she feels is ‘herself’— she might not buy it at all.
As we move towards spending more time in virtual worlds, we must ask: how will an avatar embody your identity? Will you repress certain features if you belong to a marginalized group? Will people attack your avatar on their presumptions of your gender, age, sexual orientation or race? What desires will guide the purchase of digital items?
Let’s take a virtual reality example. Sabrina is creating an avatar for her workplace Metaverse, but she does not have the disposable income to purchase photorealistic skins. She has to pick from the limited range of features available on the platform and found the discrepancy with her physical appearance to be disturbing. Although this embarrasses her, in the workplace Metaverse there is no “camera-off” option. She considers leaving her job to join a decentralized autonomous organization which allows her to contribute without revealing her face.
This second example illustrates how identity could be restricted by platform affordances and/or financial means (life chances). Body consumerism, such as the augmentation of avatars through skins or filters, will be a significant part of the creator economy in the Metaverse. In her workplace metaverse there is a culture of purchasing skins to customize avatars to make them super sleek. Sabrina cannot afford those nice skins, so she feels alienated and embarrassed, unable to represent herself in a way that fits within the group (ego identity).
There are many more examples and object lessons that we can come up with, alongside repercussions on diversity and inclusion, as well as the desirability and accessibility of virtual spaces. We could spend hours wondering why the holistic concept of identity isn’t given more attention as we are designing the Metaverse. Perhaps we should return to our earlier argument — that anything to do with money is given more attention and R&D resources. But we must also realize that money distracts, can limit long-term thinking, and obscure things of more intrinsic and enduring value, such as identity.
Glossary
Physical Appearance (Giddens, 1991 — Sociology): As secure and stable self-identity no longer comes automatically from one’s standing in the social structure, the body becomes an identity project. People change their bodies, through fashion and exercise, to express individuality and aspirations. The fact that we can do things to our body and display ourselves in different ways suggest that identity is not entirely fixed or determined by our body.
Body Consumerism (Featherstone, 1991 — Sociology): Cultural consumerism explains how people construct their identities through the goods and images that their culture provides them. The surface of the body is charged primarily with identity functions. The pivot towards a visual culture have made us all flaneurs and participants of society uses the body as a vehicle for self-expression.
Identity Behaviors (Foote, 1951 — Social Psychology): For social psychology, identity is tightly connected to behaviours. Behaviours are directed by intentions, motivations, and belongings, and in turn manifest a certain identity to others.
Social Roles (Goffman, 1959 — Social Psychology): Goffman’s idea of identity performance explains how individuals go through a careful process of curation of their identity when presenting themselves in different social contexts.
Environment and Culture (Bronfenbrenner, 1979 — Psychology): The ecological theory of identity looks at the environmental forces (family, religion, school) that shape one’s psychological self. Humans do not live in isolation; therefore, our identities develops within an environmental context.
Cultural Identity (Hall, 1996): Cultural theorists look at how the sense of belonging to a particular group or culture influences how people see and define themselves in relation to that community. A person’s sense of a belonging to a particular culture or group influences perception of self and behaviors.
Life Chances (Weber, 1920): Sociological theories unveiled the probabilistic nature of identity, namely the likelihood, given certain socio-economic factors, that an individual’s life will turn out a certain way. Today, this can be expanded to intersectionality theories.
Memory (Wilson & Ross, 2003 — Psychology): Autobiographical memories help people construct a coherent and favorable view of themselves through time, oftentimes in a favourable light.
Ego Identity (Erikson, 1968 — Developmental Psychology): As part of one’s psychosocial development, identity establishes a sense of continuity for the person. At the core, there is the conscious sense of self that is developed through social interaction.
Personal Values (Ricoeur, 1990 — Philosophy): Identity also has a moral dimension, as people have deeply held values and beliefs that make them consistent and accountable for others.
Self-Image (Bailey, 2003 — Sociology): Starting from a young age and developing for the entire lifespan, self-image is how an individual thinks they should be. This is the total subjective perception of oneself, including physical appearance, personality, capabilities and ideals.
Martina Mendola has a Masters in Comparative Literatures, a Postgraduate Certificate in Innovation and a PhD in Contemporary Literature from Trinity College Dublin. She is currently a Researcher in The Human Sciences Studio at Accenture The Dock where she explores the changing relationship between business, technology and society.
Sabrina Anjara is a Chartered Psychologist and Gates Cambridge Scholar. She read Psychology and Asian Studies at the University of Melbourne, trained in organisational psychology at King’s College London, and holds a PhD in Public Health and Primary Care from the University of Cambridge. Her postdoctoral research focused on collective leadership, psychological safety, power dynamics, work engagement, and organisational citizenship behaviour among healthcare professionals.
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