Jon Mella
ABSTRACT
Digital games have been demonstrated to promote recovery from daily work strain. However, prior research has not examined the role that player experience (PX) plays in post-work recovery despite the fact that theories in this area rely implicitly on PX concepts. Hence, this research seeks to understand how the experience of immersion shapes the recovery potential of digital games. An overview of the planned program of research, alongside the results of an initial mixed-methods survey study, are outlined here. The results suggest that immersion is broadly beneficial for recovery, though this is contingent on contextual factors, and that players actively optimise their immersion levels to maximise recovery. These findings, and those of future studies, will extend previous research by empirically testing the PX-based mechanisms by which games are assumed to promote recovery, as well as offering design implications for creators of serious games for recovery purposes.
- The Interactive Software Federation of Europe, Key Facts 2020: The Year We Played Together. 2021.Google Scholar
- Sarsenbayeva, Z., Using Video Games to Regulate Emotions. in 32nd Australian Conference on Human-Computer Interaction. 2020.Google Scholar
- Iacovides, I. and E.D. Mekler, The Role of Gaming During Difficult Life Experiences, in Proceedings of the 2019 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems. 2019. p. 1-12.Google ScholarDigital Library
- Vella, K., D. Johnson, and L. Hides. Indicators of wellbeing in recreational video game players. in Proceedings of the annual meeting of the Australian special interest group for computer human interaction. 2015.Google ScholarDigital Library
- Tyack, A. and P. Wyeth, "The Small Decisions Are What Makes it Interesting": Autonomy, Control, and Restoration in Player Experience. Proc. ACM Hum.-Comput. Interact., 2021. 5(CHI PLAY): p. Article 282.Google ScholarDigital Library
- Zijlstra, F.R.H. and S. Sonnentag, After work is done: Psychological perspectives on recovery from work. European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology, 2006. 15(2): p. 129-138.Google Scholar
- Sonnentag, S. and F.R. Zijlstra, Job characteristics and off-job activities as predictors of need for recovery, well-being, and fatigue. J Appl Psychol, 2006. 91(2): p. 330-50.Google Scholar
- Sonnentag, S. and C. Fritz, The Recovery Experience Questionnaire: Development and Validation of a Measure for Assessing Recuperation and Unwinding From Work. Journal of occupational health psychology, 2007. 12: p. 204-21.Google Scholar
- Reinecke, L., Games and recovery: The use of video and computer games to recuperate from stress and strain. Journal of Media Psychology, 2009. 21(3): p. 126-142.Google Scholar
- Collins, E. and A.L. Cox, Switch on to games: Can digital games aid post-work recovery? International Journal of Human-Computer Studies, 2014. 72(8): p. 654-662.Google Scholar
- Reinecke, L., Games at Work: The Recreational Use of Computer Games During Working Hours. CyberPsychology & Behavior, 2009. 12(4): p. 461-465.Google Scholar
- Reinecke, L., J. Klatt, and N.C. Krämer, Entertaining Media Use and the Satisfaction of Recovery Needs: Recovery Outcomes Associated With the Use of Interactive and Noninteractive Entertaining Media. Media Psychology, 2011. 14(2): p. 192-215.Google Scholar
- Collins, E., , Digital Games and Mindfulness Apps: Comparison of Effects on Post Work Recovery. JMIR Ment Health, 2019. 6(7): p. e12853.Google Scholar
- Wulf, T., , Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger? The Relationship between Cognitive Task Demands in Video Games and Recovery Experiences. Media and Communication, 2019. 7(4): p. 166-175.Google Scholar
- Tyack, A., P. Wyeth, and D. Johnson, Restorative Play: Videogames Improve Player Wellbeing After a Need-Frustrating Event, in Proceedings of the 2020 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems. 2020, Association for Computing Machinery: Honolulu, HI, USA. p. 1–15.Google ScholarDigital Library
- Weber, S., F.W. Mast, and D. Weibel, Experiencing Presence in a Gaming Activity Improves Mood After a Negative Mood Induction. International Journal of Gaming and Computer-Mediated Simulations, 2020. 12(4): p. 1-22.Google Scholar
- Renato de Aquino, L., , A Proposal for Stress Management Using Serious Games Associated to Virtual and Augmented Reality. Journal of systemics, cybernetics and informatics, 2014. 12(3): p. 1-7.Google Scholar
- Brown, E. and P. Cairns, A grounded investigation of game immersion, in CHI '04 Extended Abstracts on Human Factors in Computing Systems. 2004, Association for Computing Machinery: Vienna, Austria. p. 1297–1300.Google ScholarDigital Library
- Cairns, P., A. Cox, and A.I. Nordin, Immersion in digital games: review of gaming experience research, in Handbook of digital games. 2014. p. 767.Google ScholarCross Ref
- Jennett, C., , Measuring and defining the experience of immersion in games. International Journal of Human-Computer Studies, 2008. 66(9): p. 641-661.Google Scholar
- Thayer, R.E., Activation-Deactivation Adjective Check List: Current Overview and Structural Analysis. Psychological Reports, 1986. 58(2): p. 607-614..Google Scholar
- Denisova, A. and P. Cairns. First person vs. third person perspective in digital games: do player preferences affect immersion? in Proceedings of the 33rd Annual ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems. 2015.Google ScholarDigital Library
- Pasini, M., A Game-Based Approach to Manage Technostress at Work. in Methodologies and Intelligent Systems for Technology Enhanced Learning, 11th International Conference. 2022. Cham: Springer International Publishing.Google Scholar
- Al Osman, H., D. Haiwei, and A. El Saddik, Ubiquitous Biofeedback Serious Game for Stress Management. Access, 2016. 4: p. 1274-1286.Google Scholar
- Carlier, S., , Using a Serious Game to Reduce Stress and Anxiety in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder, in Proceedings of the 13th EAI International Conference on Pervasive Computing Technologies for Healthcare. 2019, Association for Computing Machinery: Trento, Italy. p. 452–461.Google Scholar
Recommendations
Gaming for Post-Work Recovery: The Role of Immersion
CHI '23: Proceedings of the 2023 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing SystemsPlaying digital games can be an effective means of recovering from daily work strain. However, limited research has examined which player experiences contribute to this process, limiting the ability of players to select games and play them in a manner ...
‘Jumping Out from the Pressure of Work and into the Game’: Curating Immersive Digital Game Experiences for Post-Work Recovery
Extant research demonstrates that playing digital games after work can have a psychologically restorative effect. This paper focuses on understanding how players can maximise this effect by strategically leveraging the immersive potential of digital ...
Relevance and Immersion in Digital Games: Content and Personal Factors
CHIuXiD '17: Proceedings of the 3rd International Conference on Human-Computer Interaction and User Experience in IndonesiaPrevious studies have investigated the effects of diverse game design features on player immersion. The current study investigated the relationship between game content and immersion. When players are immersed in a game, they perceive that they are "...
Comments