John Suler

My good friend Garry Smit recommended John Suler's online book to me.

It's easy to find problems with Mr. Suler. I find it distracting that Suler frequently inserts Freudian psychology into his discussions. His whole approach is typical of the Freudians: wide-ranging psychological speculation and theoretical structures without much in the way of evidence.  I was immediately turned off by the howler in his biography:

I'm a writer, researcher, photographer, and Professor of Psychology at Rider University. Internationally recognized as an expert in emerging fields of psychology, I have published widely on topics related to eastern philosophy, psychotherapy, creativity, cyberpsychology, and photographic psychology. 

This kind of language is usually reserved to book jackets, written by somebody else. Written in the first person, it reminds me of a statement you would see in a resume - something that would send the resume to the round file. It is certainly plain that Mr. Suler has a very high opinion of himself.

This blindingly obvious Jesus-complex goes well with Suler's Freudian approach to psychology. Never mind evidence and experience. Let me tell you what is "really" going on.

Even so, we need to acknowledge that Suler brings a lot of talent to the table. For example, he really is a talented photographer. The rest of the claims in his breathless self-assessment turn out to be, if not true, at least defensible. We cab expect Suler to have a brilliant career as a "talking head" whenever cyberspace is discussed in the media.

So, with these reservations, I must recommend his online analysis of the cyberspace phenomenon, especially the "Disinhibition Effect". This accounts for much of the nastiness we encounter online in general, plus (I would say) priming people for the rea; mlife behaviour we saw on January 6 insurrection.

This "disinhibition" also accounts for the "asshole" behaviour we see in Second Life which is, after all, an online application.

Suler is worth a look. What is missing is any kind of personal experience, discussion or "push back". It's a Freudian interpretation of what other people are doing in Cyberspace. Suler offers a course on the subject, where (paying) students get full credit simply for reading Suler's book. No credit is offered for actual online experience. Suler himself betrays no personal experience with Second Life beyond first impressions.