It used to be if you wanted to be someone else for a while, you’d wear a mask and go to a costume party. If no one knew who you were, there was no need to be self conscious.

Now there’s a costume party 24 hours a day on Second Life,
a virtual-reality world where users create avatars, or character representations for themselves, with clever names that tell a little more about how they want to be perceived than the names their parents gave them at birth.

An avatar on Second Life, is free, and anyone can join. If you want land, you’ll have to pay.

There are several “islands” specifically for people with ASDs and their families and friends. These havens are meant to be a safe environment where they can interact with others and be themselves without the real-life pressures they encounter when the go out in the real world. There are meetings, parties, and support groups scheduled just like in the real world, except the people attending them may be sitting at computers in different countries, yet attend the same party.

Brigadoon is designed for those with Asperger’s Syndrome, who are generally higher functioning than many with autism.

Autistic Liberation Front is run by a group that supports neurodiversity.

Then there’s Naughty Auties, run by a young man with Asperger’s Syndrome.

As intriguing as creating a new persona in a virtual world sounds, the idea makes me as uncomfortable as the real world must make many with autism uncomfortable. So I can neither endorse or condemn any of these virtual islands, havens or whatever they should be called. I have never been to Second Life at all.

I tell myself that I will create my avatar and try it our, but I’m not sure I ever will. However, for the more technologically adventurous and those who want to practice their social skills online, it may be worth exploring.

If Second Life isn’t attractive, but someone with autism wants a virtual aide for learning social skills, SIMmersion may be the ticket. It is also an interactive virtual reality created for people with ASDs. Simulated people will interact with the user by showing emotions and behaving like real people. They will interact differently each time and can carry on conversations for extended periods.

SIMmersion is meant to be an educational tool, unlike Second Life. While one may learn in Second Life, users must remember that they are interacting with avatars that have real people behind them. The people in SIMmersion, except for the user, are simulated.

While spending a lot of time at the computer may seem counter-productive for someone with autism, practicing social skills with SIMmersion or interacting with people in Second Life from the safety of homemay be better than no interaction at all. They could lead to improved social skills.