Affective uplift during video game play: a naturalistic case study

Do video games affect players’ well-being? In this case study, we examined 162,325 intensive longitudinal in-game mood reports from 67,328 play sessions of 8,695 players of the popular game PowerWash Simulator. We compared players’ moods at the beginning of play session with their moods during play, and found that the average player reported 0.034 [0.032, 0.036] visual analog scale (VAS; 0-1) units greater mood during than at the beginning of play sessions. Moreover, we predict that 72.1% [70.8%, 73.5%] of similar players experience this affective uplift during play, and that the bulk of it happens during the first 15 minutes of play. We do not know whether these results indicate causal effects or to what extent they generalize to other games or player populations. Yet, these results based on in-game subjective reports from players of a popular commercially available game suggest good external validity, and as such offer a promising glimpse of the scientific value of transparent industry-academia collaborations in understanding the psychological roles of popular digital entertainment

Do People Use Games to Compensate for Psychological Needs During Crises? : A Mixed-Methods Study of Gaming During COVID-19 Lockdowns

Do people use games to cope with adverse life events and crises? Research informed by self-determination theory proposes that people might compensate for thwarted basic psychological needs in daily life by seeking out games that satisfy those lacking needs. To test this, we conducted a preregistered mixed-method survey study (n = 285) on people’s gaming behaviours and need states during early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic (May 2020). We found qualitative evidence that gaming was an often actively sought out and successful means of replenishing particular needs, but one that could ‘backfre’ for some through an appraisal process discounting gaming as ‘unreal’. Meanwhile, contrary to our predictions, the quantitative data showed a “rich get richer, poor get poorer” pattern: need satisfaction in daily life positively correlated with need satisfaction in games.We derive methodological considerations and propose three potential explanations for this contradictory data pattern to pursue in future research

Cross-cultural patterns in mobile playtime: an analysis of 118 billion hours of human data

open access articleDespite the prevalence of gaming as a human activity, the literature on playtime is uninformed by large-scale, high-quality data. This has led to an evidence-base in which the existence of specific cultural gaming cultures (e.g. exceptional levels of gaming in East Asian nations) are not well-supported by evidence. Here we address this evidence gap by conducting the world’s first large-scale investigation of cross-cultural differences in mobile gaming via telemetry analysis. Our data cover 118 billion hours of playtime occurring in 214 countries and regions between October 2020 and October 2021. A cluster analysis establishes a data-driven set of cross-cultural groupings that describe differences in how the world plays mobile games. Despite contemporary arguments regarding Asian exceptionalism in terms of playtime, analysis shows that many East Asian countries (e.g., China) were not highly differentiated from most high-GDP Northern European nations across several measures of play. Instead, a range of previously unstudied and highly differentiated cross-cultural clusters emerged from the data and are presented here, showcasing the diversity of global gaming

No evidence that Chinese playtime mandates reduced heavy gaming in one segment of the video games industry

open access articleGovernments around the world are considering regulatory measures to reduce young people’s time spent on digital devices, particularly video games. This raises the question of whether proposed regulatory measures would be effective. Since the early 2000s, the Chinese government has been enacting regulations to directly restrict young people’s playtime. In November 2019, it limited players aged under 18 to 1.5 hours of daily playtime and 3 hours on public holidays. Using telemetry data on over seven billion hours of playtime provided by a stakeholder from the video games industry, we found no credible evidence for overall reduction in the prevalence of heavy playtime following the implementation of regulations: individual accounts became 1.14 times more likely to play heavily in any given week (95% confidence interval 1.139–1.141). This falls below our preregistered smallest effect size of interest (2.0) and thus is not interpreted as a practically meaningful increase. Results remain robust across a variety of sensitivity analyses, including an analysis of more recent (2021) adjustments to playtime regulation. This casts doubt on the effectiveness of such state-controlled playtime mandates

Reforms to improve reproducibility and quality must be coordinated across the research ecosystem: the view from the UKRN Local Network Leads

Many disciplines are facing a "reproducibility crisis", which has precipitated much discussion about how to improve research integrity, reproducibility, and transparency. A unified effort across all sectors, levels, and stages of the research ecosystem is needed to coordinate goals and reforms that focus on open and transparent research practices. Promoting a more positive incentive culture for all ecosystem members is also paramount. In this commentary, we-the Local Network Leads of the UK Reproducibility Network-outline our response to the UK House of Commons Science and Technology Committee's inquiry on research integrity and reproducibility. We argue that coordinated change is needed to create (1) a positive research culture, (2) a unified stance on improving research quality, (3) common foundations for open and transparent research practice, and (4) the routinisation of this practice. For each of these areas, we outline the roles that individuals, institutions, funders, publishers, and Government can play in shaping the research ecosystem. Working together, these constituent members must also partner with sectoral and coordinating organisations to produce effective and long-lasting reforms that are fit-for-purpose and future-proof. These efforts will strengthen research quality and create research capable of generating far-reaching applications with a sustained impact on society

Measurement and Orthogonality of Need Satisfaction and Frustration in Video Games

Scale validation study looking at need frustration (from self-determination theory) in video games as distinct from the absence of need satisfaction, and whether we can use the Basic Psychological Need Satisfaction and Frustration Scale in games contexts

The Basic Needs in Games (BANG) Model of Video Game Play and Mental Health

Existing theories of how game use relates to mental health have important limitations: few account for both quantity and quality of use, differentiate components of mental health (hedonic wellbe- ing, eudaimonic wellbeing, and illbeing), provide an explanation for both positive and negative outcomes, or readily explain the well-evidenced absence of playtime effects on mental health. Many also lack the specificity to be readily falsifiable. In response, we present the Basic Needs in Games (BANG) model. Grounded in self- determination theory, BANG proposes that mental health outcomes of game use are in large part mediated by the motivational quality of play and the extent to which play quantity and quality lead to need satisfaction or frustration. We show how BANG addresses the limitations of current theories and aligns with emerging evidence on the etiologies of disordered play. Thus, BANG advances HCI theory on the impact of games and other interactive technologies on mental health

“Clinically significant distress” in internet gaming disorder: An individual participant meta-analysis

Although the validity of internet gaming disorder (IGD) in the DSM-5 hinges on a relationship between 5 or more IGD symptoms and “clinically significant impairment and/or distress”, to date most studies have focused on statistical significance. To address this, we conduct an individual participant meta-analysis comprised of primary data from 15 studies (n = 38,851). Study 1 finds that meeting the DSM-5's proposed 5/9 diagnostic threshold is associated with d = .65 greater distress across 21 well-being constructs, which exceeds a conservative anchor for clinical significance. However, we also find that classifying participants above and below the 5/9 threshold has little power to reject that threshold: a 2/9 cut-off predicts similarly large differences. Study 2 shows that dimensional (continuous) modelling of IGD scores offers a more severe test of the proposed threshold. Finally, study 3 reveals that three criteria—preoccupation, tolerance, and loss of control—are roughly half as predictive of distress as withdrawal and escapism, highlighting limitations also present in dimensional modelling and suggesting the need to modify or remove these. In sum, we do not find evidence for invalidating IGD as proposed, but do identify issues with threshold-based categorization, inadequate differentiation between statistical and clinical significance, and the inclusion of potentially flawed criteria. We argue that these are possible negative consequences of a premature switch to confirmatory research on IGD