31 305Embodiment and Representation in Social VR
Mai Ibrahim · 2025
This chapter examines the relationship between physical bodies and their digital representations in virtual spaces through Olga Goriunova’s (2019) concept of ‘digital subjects.’ Constructed through computational processes and data aggregation, digital subjects represent users in virtual environments but are not strictly identical to them. They occupy a liminal space that blurs the boundaries between the physical and digital. Focusing on Meta’s Horizon Worlds , an immersive social VR platform, the chapter explores how data collection mechanisms are used to construct these digital subjects. By examining how biometric, behavioral, and environmental data are collected, it becomes clear that digital subjects are simultaneously connected to and separate from their users, creating a new mode of subjectivity that persists beyond the user’s control. These digital subjects maintain an indexical relationship to users, pointing back to them while also operating with a degree of autonomy, even in the absence of the user’s active participation.