META-TOO: The Project
Twinned objectives in a nutshell:
• Research Profile Enhancement
• Research Management Strengthening
• Support for Excellent Research
• Partnership Establishment
• Behaviour and Representation Analysis
• User Response and Biomarker Analysis
• Empirical Validation and User Empowerment
Research Excellence
• Provide to NKUA staff knowledge & skills for effective research performance
• Elevate the research profile of the NKUA in Metaverse research and establish it as a recognised leader in Metaverse-related research endeavours.
• Strengthen the research management capacity of NKUA
• Establish sustainable research and innovation partnerships that expand NKUA’s network of collaborators
The widening methodology applied
Scientific Excellence
Axis I: Design and Technical Research
Study 1: Impact of Avatar and Environment Characteristics on Perception of Inappropriate Behaviour
Focus: How avatar and environment attributes affect perceptions of inappropriate behaviour.
Elements: Avatars: Realism, animation, gender, ethnicity, attraction, voice, age.
Environments: Size, population density, social context.
Methods: User feedback, eye-tracking, galvanic skin response (GSR), behavioural analysis.
Goal: Identify cues that trigger perceptions of inappropriate behaviour.
Study 2: Interaction Techniques for Mitigating Inappropriate Behaviour
Focus: Develop and assess techniques to counteract inappropriate behaviours in real-time.
Strategies: Alter avatar appearances. Adjust social distances. Make offending avatars invisible.
Goal: Ensure techniques are effective and not misused.
Axis II: Experimental Psychological Studies
Study 3: Harassment Prevention through Empathy and Perspective-taking
Focus: Test perspective-taking exercises to prevent harassment.
Method: Body-swapping and embodiment exercises. Experience inappropriate behaviours in different avatars.
Goal: Increase empathy and reduce harassment.
Evaluation: Questionnaires, incident reports, interviews.
Study 4: Bystander Behaviour in the Metaverse
Focus: Study active bystander behaviour in response to inappropriate conduct.
Method: Users witness and react to harassment scenarios. Analysis of reactions and conditions for effective intervention.
Evaluation: Behavioural indicators, questionnaires, interviews.
Interdisciplinary approach of META-TOO
