Emergent interaction

In my survey, I asked letterboxers to describe any variations they had incorporated into letterboxing. 73 of the 355 participants (20.5%) told me about new or novel approaches they had taken. I call these emergent interactions because they are unexpected and unpredictable, but for some unexplained reason they cause dramatic changes in the behaviors of other letterboxers, and in the culture of letterboxing itself.

The participants told me about box variations such as

• Drive-by letterboxes - those that can be found with little or no walking, usually close to trail heads or parking lots.
• Bonus boxes were reported by several participants. A bonus box is a traditional letterbox; however, clues to it are placed in a nearby letterbox with the permission of the owner.
• A virtual physical letterbox. “The clues were written on the walls of a restaurant (the restaurant encourages graffiti) and they led to a final item. The finder has to tell me what the item was. I carry the actual letterbox with me and the finder can either wait to stamp into the box when they see me next or I can email them a scan of the stamp.”
• Others use micro boxes or nano boxes, film canisters or similar small containers, particularly in urban areas, to hide letterboxes where a traditional box would not fit or would be too noticeable.
• Glow in the dark boxes were described for night letterboxing.
• Memorial boxes to mark special events or milestone birthdays have been created by participants.
• Three participants described indoor letterboxing, where a letterbox is placed in a business establishment with the employees surrendering the letterbox to when requested with a secret password. One participant described placing one in a coffee shop where the letterbox is handed over for stamping when the customer asks for a “spinach latte.”

I realize that just by blogging my research, I am contributing to this emergent interaction. Readers will hear something interesting that other letterboxers are doing, and accept it and incorporate it into their own experience of letterboxing. And then they'll tell two people, and they'll tell two people, who will tell two people... This picture shows an urban letterbox made out of duct tape and googly eyes with a tiny stamp and journal tucked inside.