How do you handle unwanted friend requests?

[Steely Jim]

I think they're really both part of the same social phenomenon, namely a realization that we interact primarily on a cognitive level and that can transcend actual physical interactions in many cases. The big difference between them seems to be that social networking sites seem to promote a hybridizing approach, with the idea that most users will use the site to tie into their local community.

With the MMO, the expectation is that most people will not interact in the physical world, unless they did so prior to making contact within the game anyway. The social networking sites will always have their place because they promote real-world interactions by building online communities based primarily on offline interests. MMOs promote a single shared interest--the game, but they tend to dampen communication about things beyond that world.

As these MMOs progress, they are showing more and more awareness of recreating physical communication; we primates are such visual creatures that kinesics are still very important to our ability to communicate. The communication level of an MMO is weaker, mostly because these interactions will never be supported by real-life interactions that would allow for assumptions to be made in lieu of extra-linguistic communication within the virtual world.

In any case, there is always a cost to friendship where gift exchanges (including time donations) are present, and that cost is the future reciprocation of that gift exchange.