Location Information Sharing System on a Virtual Town Map to Enhance a Sense of Connectedness with Group Members

Social isolation and loneliness among people living alone are major social issues that can lead to anxiety and depression. One possible approach to alleviate these issues is to enhance the sense of connectedness and social presence in society and among others. To increase one’s sense of connectedness and social presence with others, it is important to increase awareness and the sense of being part of a community by being aware of one’s and others’ presence, activities, and relevance. This study aims to provide situational awareness by sharing location information and enhancing the sense of connectedness with others. Accordingly, we propose a location information sharing system that visualizes members who live far from each other in real space as if they were living together in a virtual town, reflecting their actual location information. Mapping members on a small-town map is expected to reduce their sense of distance and make it easier for them to notice each other, which may enhance their sense of unity and connectedness as a group. To verify the effectiveness of the proposed system, a comparative experiment was conducted using an application that shares accurate location information on a real map. The results show that the proposed system reduces resistance to sharing location information and increases the sense of unity among group members. In addition, it was confirmed that the proposed system may enhance awareness and a sense of connectedness with continued use.