dissociation and role playing

Dissociation, like many mental operations, occurs along a continuum, from mild to severe. Simply put, it's a vertical split in consciousness (as opposed to repression, which is horizontal), with the barriers making up those splits varying in how permeable they are. I meant "role playing" in the classic social-psychological sense....one's role as daughter, mother, professional, etc... as distinct roles with distinct emotional/attitudinal components - roles that we "switch" back and forth from. There is more conscious control over this switching, and more permeability between the "roles" than in DID. Fantasy-driven environments in cyberspace (like MOOs and avatar chat) encourage the adoption of multiple roles, and (imho) encourage dissociation (in some people).

My apologies if my incomplete explanation in my previous message offended you, Mark. I'd love to hear more about your experiences online.

Replies:

dissociation and role playing, by Mark, 1/23/99 are healthy people online?, by John, 1/23/99 are healthy people online?, by Mark, 1/23/99 Re: are healthy people online?, by karen, 10/16/99 Re: are healthy people online?, by John, 10/16/99 Re:dissociation and role playing, by Lana, 5/19/99

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