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Regulating Virtual Behaviour: The Evolution of Law in Real and Virtual Spaces

Regulating Virtual Behaviour: The Evolution of Law in Real and Virtual Spaces. Lynne Hall University of Northumbria lynne.hall@unn.ac.uk. Introduction. This virtual life Virtual Society MUDs Legal Structures in MUDs Crime and Punishment. This virtual life.

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Regulating Virtual Behaviour: The Evolution of Law in Real and Virtual Spaces

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  1. Regulating Virtual Behaviour: The Evolution of Law in Real and Virtual Spaces Lynne Hall University of Northumbria lynne.hall@unn.ac.uk

  2. Introduction • This virtual life • Virtual Society • MUDs • Legal Structures in MUDs • Crime and Punishment

  3. This virtual life • 6 out of 10 children have access to the net • Biggest growing user population: women over 50 • Increasing ubiquity of computer • Computer provides an alternative to traditional forms of home-based recreation • letter writing • telephones • games • reading

  4. Living the virtual life • Web • Email • Chat • Gaming • Working • Shopping • Communicating • Interacting

  5. Virtual does not mean alone • Raison d’etre of the net = communication • Growing possibility to find others to communicate with. • Many small societies in many spaces on the net • interest groups • café society • village communities

  6. Multi-User Dimensions • Text-based synchronous communication forums • Multi-user • Recreational • Communication not just limited to speech • Stable, well-used technology • Geographically bounded spaces • Immersive...

  7. MUD Society • Occurs in context • MUD provides plot, storyline and landscape • Involves primarily violent activities • Tends to be highly stratified • deities / admin equivalent • known players (high level, long time) • mid-ranked players (approved of players) • low-ranked players (low-level or “invisible”) • newbies

  8. Role Playing MUDs • Most typical sort of MUD • Fantasy / Sci-Fi genre most common • Players become a virtual character in an interactive novel • Gaming activities focus on gaining experience, money, possessions

  9. The populace • Group identity often strong • race, guild, clan, city, church • Strong personal loyalty between players • Tendency to e-romance • High potential for conflict • between formal, identified groups • between informal player groups

  10. Legal Systems • Common / case law • precedent • hierarchical judicial structure • adversarial • judge as neutral arbitrator • Code law • codified • permanent • inquisitorial

  11. Legal Theories • Legal Formalism • scientific, positivist • Legal realism • law as action, judges as people • Natural Law • underlying fundamental moral principles

  12. Basis of law in MUDs • Legal Formalism • scientific, positivist • Legal realism • law as action, judges as people • Natural Law • underlying fundamental moral principles

  13. Deviant Behaviours? • Ownership • when is the object yours and when does it become public property? • Property • the right to private space • Acceptable interactions • what is acceptable in a RP MUD?

  14. Law in Virtual Communities • Similar to real systems • based on wrongful acts • sources, enforcement agencies, penalties • But not like real -> crimes committed, judged and punished in virtual space • Precedent for separating the real and the virtual. • LambdaMOOs Virtual Rape (Dibble)

  15. Administration of Law • Games Admin as law providers • dictatorial / oligarchical control structures • codes of conduct • Players as law providers • tend to build on code of conduct • increases democracy and player loyalty • often highly successful, based on status in the MUD community

  16. Crime • Harassment • most serious MUD crime • focused at the player not the character • Theft • often in-role • Malicious Intent to Harm • RP Muds: rape, violent assault, murder • Social MUDs: destruction of property, verbal attacks

  17. Punishment • Needs to be appropriate to context • Varying degrees of severity • Site / Player banning • “Toading” • Imprisonment • Removal of status / experience • Removal / destruction of possessions

  18. Virtual Law • Credible • within the context that it is applied (similar to nation / state based law) • Effective • has to be enforced to have an impact (similar to real world law) • Relevant • within any multi user environment deviance occurs and must be dealt with

  19. Virtual Law • Incredible • its not real, why should there be any need for it? • Ineffective • has no effect, very easy to avoid enforcement • Irrelevant • it doesn’t matter what people do in virtual space as this has no effect on the real

  20. Summary • Sustained growth in computer supported co-operative recreation • Need for social framework to regulate behaviour • Crime and deviance do exist • Virtual and real is there a cross-over?

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