We are happy to announce the new publication of The Journal of Virtual Worlds Research:
Volume 5, Number 3: Managerial & Commercial Applications 
The editorial team for this issue:
- Shu Schiller, Wright State University, USA
- Brian Mennecke, Iowa State University, USA
- Fiona Fui-Hoon Nah, Missouri University of Science and Technology, USA
Scholars and practitioners are confronted with an apparent contradiction: on the one hand, the business case for virtual worlds appears to offer great promise; while on the other hand, the observed returns and demonstrable successes are often absent or negligible. This special issue on “managerial and commercial applications” of virtual worlds aims to highlight research that makes a significant and novel contribution in theory and practice about virtual worlds in the business domain.
In this last issue of 2012, you will find three papers on the topic, two “Assembled” papers and one “Think Piece.”
Managing Editor Corner
Research Papers
- Time for a Post-Mortem?: Business Professionals’ Perspectives on the Disillusionment of Virtual Worlds
Patrick J. Bateman, Jacqueline C. Pike, Nicholas Berente, Sean Hansen - Training Evaluation in Virtual Worlds: Development of a Model
Richard N. Landers, Rachel C. Callan - Avatar Identification on a 3D Commercial Website: Gender Issues
Ingrid Poncin, Marion Garnier
Assembled (Rush to Press Papers)
- Does Loving an Avatar Threaten Real Life Marriage?
Richard A Kolotkin, Maggie M Williams, Casey Lloyd, Earnest W Hallford - The Cowl Makes the Monk: How Avatar Appearance and Role Labels Affect Cognition in Virtual Worlds
Jorge Peña, Matthew S McGlone, Joseph Sanchez
“Think Pieces”
- A Cross-Case Analysis of Possible Facial Emotion Extraction Methods that Could Be Used in Second Life – Pre Experimental Work
Shahnaz Kamberi
We are also happy to let you know of the following:
- Our next issue Assembled (2013) will be led by JVWR Managing Editor Prof. Yesha Sivan, Metaverse Labs & Academic College of Tel Aviv-Yaffo, Israel
- We just came back from Orlando Augmented Reality workshop and are already planning our next major JVWR event – in Milan, Italy. So mark your calendars around December 16-18, 2013 (http://icis2013.aisnet.org/).
- Check our web site’s special page on events in our field for updates.
- Review past issues on our website’s special all issues cover view page.
- We welcome you to join our Facebook page ‘theJVWR‘
- Follow us @theJVWR on Twitter
- And/or subscribe to our mailing list (on the top left of http://www.jvwreserach.org).
Tzafnat Shpak
Coordinating Editor
TheJVWR – The Journal of Virtual Worlds Research
http://jvwresearch.org