hotauthor: mandryk_r* : Human-Computer Interaction Bibliography Search

[1] Fostering Intrinsic Motivation through Avatar Identification in Digital Games Players' Motivations in Games / Birk, Max V. / Atkins, Cheralyn / Bowey, Jason T. / Mandryk, Regan L. Proceedings of the ACM CHI'16 Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems 2016-05-07 v.1 p.2982-2995

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Summary: Fostering intrinsic motivation with interactive applications can increase the enjoyment that people experience when using technology, but can also translate into more invested effort. We propose that identifying with an avatar in a game will increase the intrinsic motivation of the player. We analyzed data from 126 participants playing a custom endless runner game and show that similarity identification, embodied identification, and wishful identification increases autonomy, immersion, invested effort, enjoyment, and positive affect. We also show that greater identification translates into motivated behaviour as operationalized by the time that players spent in an unending version of the infinite runner. Important for the design of games for entertainment and serious purposes, we discuss how identification with an avatar can be facilitated to cultivate intrinsic motivation within and beyond games.

[2] The Effects of Social Exclusion on Play Experience and Hostile Cognitions in Digital Games Players' Motivations in Games / Birk, Max V. / Buttlar, Benjamin / Bowey, Jason T. / Poeller, Susanne / Thomson, Shelby C. / Baumann, Nicola / Mandryk, Regan L. Proceedings of the ACM CHI'16 Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems 2016-05-07 v.1 p.3007-3019

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Summary: The social nature of multiplayer games provides compelling play experiences that are dynamic, unpredictable, and satisfying; however, playing digital games with others can result in feeling socially excluded. There are several known harmful effects of ostracism, including on cognition and the interpretation of social information. To investigate the effects of social exclusion in the context of a multiplayer game, we developed and validated a social exclusion paradigm that we embedded in an online game. Called Operator Challenge, our paradigm influenced feelings of social exclusion and access to hostile cognitions (measured through a word-completion task). In addition, the degree of experienced belonging predicted player enjoyment, effort, and the number of hostile words completed; however, the experience measures did not mediate the relationship between belonging and access to hostile cognitions. Our work facilitates understanding the causes and effects of exclusion, which is important for the study of player experience in multiplayer games.

[3] Scaffolding Player Location Awareness through Audio Cues in First-Person Shooters Supporting Player Performance / Johanson, Colby / Mandryk, Regan L. Proceedings of the ACM CHI'16 Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems 2016-05-07 v.1 p.3450-3461

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Summary: Digital games require players to learn various skills, which is often accomplished through play itself. In multiplayer games, novices can feel overwhelmed if competing against better players, and can fail to improve, which may lead to unsatisfying play and missed social play opportunities. To help novices learn the requisite skills, we first determined how experts accomplish an important task in multiplayer FPS games -- locating their opponent. After determining that an understanding of audio cues and how to leverage them was critical, we designed and evaluated two systems for introducing this skill of locating opponents through audio cues -- a training system, and a modified game interface. We found that both systems improved accuracy and confidence, but that the training system led to more audio cues being recognized. Our work may help people of disparate skill play together, by scaffolding novices to learn and use a strategy commonly employed by experts.

[4] How Disclosing Skill Assistance Affects Play Experience in a Multiplayer First-Person Shooter Game Supporting Player Performance / Depping, Ansgar E. / Mandryk, Regan L. / Li, Chengzhao / Gutwin, Carl / Vicencio-Moreira, Rodrigo Proceedings of the ACM CHI'16 Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems 2016-05-07 v.1 p.3462-3472

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Summary: In social play settings, it can be difficult for people with different skill levels to play a game together. Player balancing that provides skill assistance for the weaker player can allow for enjoyable play experiences; however, previous research (and conventional wisdom) has suggested that skill assistance should be kept hidden to avoid perceptions of unfairness. We carried out a study to test how disclosing skill assistance affects player experience. We found -- surprisingly -- that disclosing assistance did not harm play experience; players were more influenced by the benefits of equalized performance resulting from assistance than by their knowledge of the assist. We introduce the idea of attribution biases to help explain why awareness was not harmful -- people tend to take credit for their successes, but attribute failures externally. We discuss how game designers can incorporate skill assistance to build multiplayer games that improve experiences for a wide range of players.

[5] Extracting Heart Rate from Videos of Online Participants Backstage of Crowdsourcing Legitimacy, Performance and Crowd Support / Muender, Thomas / Miller, Matthew K. / Birk, Max V. / Mandryk, Regan L. Proceedings of the ACM CHI'16 Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems 2016-05-07 v.1 p.4562-4567

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Summary: Crowdsourcing experiments online allows for low-cost data gathering with large participant pools; however, collecting data online does not give researchers access to certain metrics. For example, physiological measures such as heart rate (HR) can provide high-resolution data about the physical, emotional, and mental state of the participant. We investigate and characterize the feasibility of gathering HR from videos of online participants engaged in single user and social tasks. We show that room lighting, head motion, and network bandwidth influence measurement quality, but that instructing participants in good practices substantially improves measurement quality. Our work takes a step towards online physiological data collection.

[6] How to Present Game Difficulty Choices?: Exploring the Impact on Player Experience Engaging Players in Games / Smeddinck, Jan D. / Mandryk, Regan L. / Birk, Max V. / Gerling, Kathrin M. / Barsilowski, Dietrich / Malaka, Rainer Proceedings of the ACM CHI'16 Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems 2016-05-07 v.1 p.5595-5607

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Summary: Matching game difficulty to player ability is a crucial step toward a rewarding player experience, yet making difficulty adjustments that are effective yet unobtrusive can be challenging. This paper examines the impact of automatic and player-initiated difficulty adjustment on player experience through two studies. In the first study, 40 participants played the casual game THYFTHYF either in motion-based or sedentary mode, using menu-based, embedded, or automatic difficulty adjustment. In the second study, we created an adapted version of the commercially available game fl0w to allow us to carry out a more focused study of sedentary casual play. Results from both studies demonstrate that the type of difficulty adjustment has an impact on perceived autonomy, but other player experience measures were not affected as expected. Our findings suggest that most players express a preference for manual difficulty choices, but that overall game experience was not notably impacted by automated difficulty adjustments.

[7] Peak-End Effects on Player Experience in Casual Games Engaging Players in Games / Gutwin, Carl / Rooke, Christianne / Cockburn, Andy / Mandryk, Regan L. / Lafreniere, Benjamin Proceedings of the ACM CHI'16 Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems 2016-05-07 v.1 p.5608-5619

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Summary: The peak-end rule is a psychological heuristic observing that people's retrospective assessment of an experience is strongly influenced by the intensity of the peak and final moments of that experience. We examine how aspects of game player experience are influenced by peak-end manipulations to the sequence of events in games that are otherwise objectively identical. A first experiment examines players' retrospective assessments of two games (a pattern matching game based on Bejeweled and a point-and-click reaction game) when the sequence of difficulty is manipulated to induce positive, negative and neutral peak-end effects. A second experiment examines assessments of a shootout game in which the balance between challenge and skill is similarly manipulated. Results across the games show that recollection of challenge was strongly influenced by peak-end effects; however, results for fun, enjoyment, and preference to repeat were varied -- sometimes significantly in favour of the hypothesized effects, sometimes insignificant, but never against the hypothesis.

[8] SIGCHI Games: The Scope of Games and Play Research at CHI SIG Meetings / Nacke, Lennart E. / Cox, Anna / Mandryk, Regan L. / Cairns, Paul Extended Abstracts of the ACM CHI'16 Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems 2016-05-07 v.2 p.1088-1091

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Summary: The games research community at CHI has become an ever-growing significant part of the conference, demonstrated by the SIGCHI-sponsored CHI PLAY conference and the inclusion of a games subcommittee at CHI 2016. Given the increase in quantity and variety of submissions, and the involvement and engagement of practitioners within the community, it is important for the community to have this SIG as a forum. We plan to give a brief overview of the history of game research at CHI as well as its current state. Then, we want to engage the community in a discussion about the scope that games research at CHI should have and where we want to take this community from here. We want to vibrantly explore new outlets for academic dissemination, community outreach, and collaborations with practitioners.

[9] How Self-Esteem Shapes our Interactions with Play Technologies Player Experience and WellBeing / Birk, Max V. / Mandryk, Regan L. / Miller, Matthew K. / Gerling, Kathrin M. Proceedings of the 2015 ACM SIGCHI Annual Symposium on Computer-Human Interaction in Play 2015-10-05 p.35-45

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Summary: The experience that results from video game play is shaped by the play environment, but also by various characteristics of the person playing. We investigated how player self-esteem predicts post-game motivation (enjoyment, effort, and tension), and conducted mediated regressions to show that players' self-esteem alters post-play motivation by affecting how needs are satisfied during play. We also explored how self-esteem predicts post-play positive and negative affect and conducted mediated regressions to show how motivation partially mediates those effects. Our work suggests that players with different levels of self-esteem experience games differently; but more importantly, we provide an explanation of how these differences form by examining the mechanisms during games that ultimately contribute to player experience. Situating our results within theories of self, we discuss the importance of self-esteem for understanding player experience, describe the implications for games research, and consider how self-esteem shapes our interactions with play technologies.

[10] Manipulating Leaderboards to Induce Player Experience Notes! Notes! Notes! / Bowey, Jason T. / Birk, Max V. / Mandryk, Regan L. Proceedings of the 2015 ACM SIGCHI Annual Symposium on Computer-Human Interaction in Play 2015-10-05 p.115-120

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Summary: Assessing and inducing player experience (pX) in games user research (GUR) is complicated because of the tradeoff between maintaining rigour through experimental control and having participants feel like they are engaged in play. To establish and evaluate an embedded method for inducing a sense of success or failure in participants during gameplay (e.g., to study how different players exhibit resilience to in-game failure), we manipulated leaderboard position in an experiment in which 155 participants played a Bejeweled clone. We show that manipulating success perception through leaderboards increases the player's perception of competence, autonomy, presence, enjoyment, and positive affect over manipulated failure. In addition, displaying the score enhances the effect on positive affect, autonomy and enjoyment, while not increasing detectability.

[11] The False Dichotomy between Positive and Negative Affect in Game Play Workshops & Courses / Birk, Max V. / Iacovides, Ioanna / Johnson, Daniel / Mandryk, Regan L. Proceedings of the 2015 ACM SIGCHI Annual Symposium on Computer-Human Interaction in Play 2015-10-05 p.799-804

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Summary: Most of the time games make us happy, but sometimes they are frustrating or make us feel sad. They allow us to experience pleasure, success and joy, but they can also yield feelings of frustration, failure, or sorrow from darker themes. In games, we can experience the full range of emotions -- both positive and negative. While a positive experience is often the goal, there are many ways in which negative affect can enhance play. First, the almost masochistic experience of failure and frustration within play can lead to intense positive feelings when overcome. Second, negative emotional experiences, such as feeling uncomfortable, guilty, or sad can also provide additional emotional range that is valued by players. Third, a number of games have emerged in recent years that encourage players to think about difficult or challenging issues that are unlikely to engender positive emotions.
The CHIPLAY 2015 False Dichotomy Workshop focuses on the range of valence in games and invites experts from across fields to contribute to our understanding of the interplay between positive and negative affect within play. The workshop goals are to investigate the interplay between positive and negative affect, identify gaps in our knowledge, determine future research directions, and build the community of people interested in the false dichotomy between positive and negative affect in games. The workshop will consist of a brief introduction game, followed by group brainstorming, small group interaction, and a closing plenary discussion.

[12] Modeling Motivation in a Social Network Game Using Player-Centric Traits and Personality Traits Long Presentations / Birk, Max V. / Toker, Dereck / Mandryk, Regan L. / Conati, Cristina Proceedings of the 2015 Conference on User Modeling, Adaptation and Personalization 2015-06-29 p.18-30

Keywords: User modeling; Personality; Player experience; Social network game; Linear regression; Moderation; Motivation

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Summary: People are drawn to play different types of videogames and find enjoyment in a range of gameplay experiences. Envisaging a representative game player or persona allows game designers to personalize game content; however, there are many ways to characterize players and little guidance on which approaches best model player behavior and preference. To provide knowledge about how player characteristics contribute to game experience, we investigate how personality traits as well as player styles from the BrianHex model moderate the prediction of player motivation with a social network game. Our results show that several player characteristics impact motivation, expressed in terms of enjoyment and effort. We also show that player enjoyment and effort, as predicted by our models, impact players' in-game behaviors, illustrating both the predictive power and practical utility of our models for guiding user adaptation.

[13] Effects of arm embodiment on implicit coordination, co-presence, and awareness in mixed-focus distributed tabletop tasks Working with others / Doucette, Andre / Gutwin, Carl / Mandryk, Regan Proceedings of the 2015 Conference on Graphics Interface 2015-06-03 p.131-138

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Summary: Mixed-focus collaboration occurs when people work on individual tasks in a shared space -- and although their tasks may not be directly linked, they still need to maintain awareness and manage access to shared resources. This kind of collaboration is common on tables, where people often use the same space to carry out work that is only loosely coupled. At physical tables, people easily manage to coordinate access to the table surface and the artifacts on it, because people have years of experience interacting around other physical bodies. At distributed digital tabletops, however, where there is no physical body for the remote person, many of the natural cues used to manage mixed-focus collaboration are missing. To compensate, distributed groupware often uses digital embodiments. On digital touch tables, however, we know little about how these embodiments affect coordination and awareness. We carried out an empirical study of how four factors in an arm embodiment (transparency, input technique, visual fidelity, and tactile feedback) affected implicit coordination, awareness, and co-presence. We found that although some embodiments affected subjective feelings of co-presence or awareness, there were no changes in table behavior -- people acted as if the other person did not exist. These findings show the possibilities and limitations of digital arm embodiments, and suggest that the natural advantages of tables for collaboration may not extend to distributed tables.

[14] Gender, Age, and Responsiveness to Cialdini's Persuasion Strategies Understanding Communities / Orji, Rita / Mandryk, Regan L. / Vassileva, Julita Proceedings of the 2015 International Conference on Persuasive Technology 2015-06-03 p.147-159

Keywords: Persuasive technology; Behavior change; Gender; Age; Persuasive strategies; Persuasiveness; Individual differences; Susceptibility

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Summary: Research has shown that there are differences in how males and females respond to persuasive attempts. This paper examines the persuasiveness of the six persuasive strategies -- Reciprocity, Scarcity, Authority, Commitment and Consistency, Consensus and Liking developed by Cialdini with respect to age and gender. The results of the large-scale study (N = 1108) show that males and females differ significantly in their responsiveness to the strategies. Overall, females are more responsive to most of the strategies than males and some strategies are more suitable for persuading one gender than the other. The results of our study also reveal some differences between younger adults and adults with respect to the persuasiveness of the strategies. Finally, the results show that irrespective of gender and age, there are significant differences between the strategies regarding their perceived persuasiveness overall, shedding light on the comparative effectiveness of the strategies.

[15] Mobile Gamification for Crowdsourcing Data Collection: Leveraging the Freemium Model Motivation & Participation / Dergousoff, Kristen / Mandryk, Regan L. Proceedings of the ACM CHI'15 Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems 2015-04-18 v.1 p.1065-1074

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Summary: Classic ways of gathering data on human behaviour are time-consuming, costly and are subject to limited participant pools. Crowdsourcing offers a reduction in operating costs and access to a diverse and large participant pool; however issues arise concerning low worker pay and questions about data quality. Gamification provides a motivation to participate, but also requires the development of specialized, research-question specific games that can be costly to produce. Our solution combines gamification and crowdsourcing in a smartphone-based system that emulates the popular Freemium model of play to motivate voluntary participation through in-game rewards, using a robust framework to study multiple unrelated research questions within the same system. We deployed our game on the Android store and compared it to a gamified laboratory version and a non-gamified laboratory version, and found that players who used the in-game rewards were motivated to do experimental tasks. There was no difference between the systems for performance on a motor task; however, performance on the cognitive task was worse for the crowdsourced game. We discuss options for improving performance on tasks requiring attention.

[16] Long-Term Use of Motion-Based Video Games in Care Home Settings HCI for the Elderly / Gerling, Kathrin M. / Mandryk, Regan L. / Linehan, Conor Proceedings of the ACM CHI'15 Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems 2015-04-18 v.1 p.1573-1582

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Summary: Recent research suggests that motion-based video games have the potential to provide both mental and physical stimulation for older adults in residential care. However, little research has explored the practical challenges and opportunities that arise from integrating these games within existing schedules of activities in these contexts. In our work, we report on a qualitative enquiry that was conducted over a three month period at two long-term care facilities. Findings suggest that older adults enjoyed playing video games, and that games can be a valuable means of re-introducing challenge in late life, but that the impact of age-related changes and impairment can influence people's ability to engage with games in a group setting. We outline core challenges in the design for care context and discuss implications of our work regarding the suitability of games as a self-directed leisure activity.

[17] Now You Can Compete With Anyone: Balancing Players of Different Skill Levels in a First-Person Shooter Game Player Performance & Experience in Games / Vicencio-Moreira, Rodrigo / Mandryk, Regan L. / Gutwin, Carl Proceedings of the ACM CHI'15 Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems 2015-04-18 v.1 p.2255-2264

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Summary: When player skill levels differ widely in a competitive First-Person Shooter (FPS) game, enjoyment suffers: weaker players become frustrated and stronger players become less engaged. Player balancing techniques attempt to assist the weaker player and make games more competitive, but these techniques have limitations for deployment when skill levels vary substantially. We developed new player balancing schemes to deal with a range of FPS skill difference, and tested these techniques in one-on-one deathmatches using a commercial-quality FPS game developed with the UDK engine. Our results showed that the new balancing schemes are extremely effective at balancing, even for players with large skill differences. Surprisingly, the techniques that were most effective at balancing were also rated as most enjoyable by both players -- even though these schemes were the most noticeable. Our study is the first to show that player balancing can work well in realistic FPS games, providing developers with a way to increase the audience for this popular genre. In addition, our results demonstrate the idea that successful balancing is as much about the way the technique is applied as it is about the specific manipulation.

[18] Designing Wheelchair-Based Movement Games Papers from Assets 2013 / Gerling, Kathrin M. / Mandryk, Regan L. / Miller, Matthew / Kalyn, Michael R. / Birk, Max / Smeddinck, Jan D. ACM Transactions on Accessible Computing 2015-03 v.6 n.2 p.6

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Summary: People using wheelchairs have access to fewer sports and other physically stimulating leisure activities than nondisabled persons, and often lead sedentary lifestyles that negatively influence their health. While motion-based video games have demonstrated great potential of encouraging physical activity among nondisabled players, the accessibility of motion-based games is limited for persons with mobility disabilities, thus also limiting access to the potential health benefits of playing these games. In our work, we address this issue through the design of wheelchair-accessible motion-based game controls. We present KINECTWheels, a toolkit designed to integrate wheelchair movements into motion-based games. Building on the toolkit, we developed Cupcake Heaven, a wheelchair-based video game designed for older adults using wheelchairs, and we created Wheelchair Revolution, a motion-based dance game that is accessible to both persons using wheelchairs and nondisabled players. Evaluation results show that KINECTWheels can be applied to make motion-based games wheelchair-accessible, and that wheelchair-based games engage broad audiences in physically stimulating play. Through the application of the wheelchair as an enabling technology in games, our work has the potential of encouraging players of all ages to develop a positive relationship with their wheelchair.

[19] Improving player balancing in racing games Research paper presentations / Cechanowicz, Jared E. / Gutwin, Carl / Bateman, Scott / Mandryk, Regan / Stavness, Ian Proceedings of the 2014 ACM SIGCHI Annual Symposium on Computer-Human Interaction in Play 2014-10-19 p.47-56

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Summary: In competitive games where players' skill levels are mismatched, the play experience can be unsatisfying for both stronger and weaker players. Player balancing provides assistance for less-skilled players in order to make games more competitive and engaging. Although player balancing can be seen in many real-world games, there is little work on the design and effectiveness of these techniques outside of shooting games. In this paper we provide new knowledge about player balancing in the popular and competitive racing genre. We studied issues of noticeability and balancing effectiveness in a prototype racing game, and tested the effects of several balancing techniques on performance and play experience. The techniques significantly improved the balance of player performance, were preferred by both experts and novices, increased novices' feelings of competitiveness, and did not detract from experts' experience. Our results provide new understanding of the design and use of player balancing for racing games, and provide novel techniques that can also be applied to other genres.

[20] Decreasing sedentary behaviours in pre-adolescents using casual exergames at school Research paper presentations / Gao, Yue / Gerling, Kathrin M. / Mandryk, Regan L. / Stanley, Kevin G. Proceedings of the 2014 ACM SIGCHI Annual Symposium on Computer-Human Interaction in Play 2014-10-19 p.97-106

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Summary: There are risks to too much sedentary behaviour, regardless of a person's level of physical activity, particularly for children. As exercise habits instilled during childhood are strong predictors of healthy lifestyles later in life, it is important that schools break up long sedentary periods with short periods of physical activity. Casual exergames are an appealing option for schools who wish to engage adolescents, and have been shown to provide exertion levels at recommended values, even when played for only 10 minutes. In this paper we describe a preliminary survey with teachers of a local school that informed the deployment of a casual exergame with a group of pre-adolescent students from the same school. We show that students preferred the game to traditional exercise, that the game was able to generate appropriate levels of exertion in pre-adolescents, and that students have a sophisticated understanding of the role of exercise in their lives. Overall, we establish the feasibility of casual exergames for combating sedentary behavior in preteen classrooms.

[21] Designing a gameful system to support the collection, curation, exploration, and sharing of sports memorabilia Works-in-progress / Watson, Diane / Valtchanov, Deltcho / Hancock, Mark / Mandryk, Regan Proceedings of the 2014 ACM SIGCHI Annual Symposium on Computer-Human Interaction in Play 2014-10-19 p.451-452

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Summary: Collectors often attach memories and stories to the objects they collect. These stories can be lost over time, and particularly when the collections are digitized. In this paper, we present semi-structured interviews with collectors of hockey memorabilia to inform a set of design guidelines for creating games and playful interfaces that support collectors. Our interviews highlighted the importance of narrative, organization, and authenticity to collection, and identified the need to support emergent behaviour. Our work provides an example of gameful design principles that could motivate collectors to digitize and share their collections.

[22] The effectiveness (or lack thereof) of aim-assist techniques in first-person shooter games Understanding and designing games / Vicencio-Moreira, Rodrigo / Mandryk, Regan L. / Gutwin, Carl / Bateman, Scott Proceedings of ACM CHI 2014 Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems 2014-04-26 v.1 p.937-946

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Summary: Aim-assistance techniques have been shown to work for player balancing in 2D environments, but little information exists about how well these techniques will work in a 3D FPS game. We carried out three studies of the performance of five different aim assists in an Unreal-based game world. The assists worked well in a target-range scenario (study 1), but their performance was reduced when game elements were introduced in a walkthrough map (study 2). We systematically examined the relationships between realistic game elements and assist performance (study 3). These studies show that two techniques -- bullet magnetism and area cursor -- worked well in a wide variety of situations. Other techniques that worked well were too perceptible, and some previously-successful techniques did not work well in any game-like scenario. Our studies are the first to provide empirical evidence of the performance of aim assist techniques in 3D environments, and the first to identify the complexities in using these techniques in real FPS games.

[23] Effects of balancing for physical abilities on player performance, experience and self-esteem in exergames Exergame design / Gerling, Kathrin Maria / Miller, Matthew / Mandryk, Regan L. / Birk, Max Valentin / Smeddinck, Jan David Proceedings of ACM CHI 2014 Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems 2014-04-26 v.1 p.2201-2210

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Summary: Game balancing can help players with different skill levels play multiplayer games together; however, little is known about how the balancing approach affects performance, experience, and self-esteem'especially when differences in player strength result from given abilities, rather than learned skill. We explore three balancing approaches in a dance game and show that the explicit approach commonly used in commercial games reduces self-esteem and feelings of relatedness in dyads, whereas hidden balancing improves self-esteem and reduces score differential without affecting game outcome. We apply our results in a second study with dyads where one player had a mobility disability and used a wheelchair. By making motion-based games accessible for people with different physical abilities, and by enabling people with mobility disabilities to compete on a par with able-bodied peers, we show how to provide empowering experiences through enjoyable games that have the potential to increase physical activity and self-esteem.

[24] The effects of embodied persuasive games on player attitudes toward people using wheelchairs Persuasive technologies and applications / Gerling, Kathrin Maria / Mandryk, Regan L. / Birk, Max Valentin / Miller, Matthew / Orji, Rita Proceedings of ACM CHI 2014 Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems 2014-04-26 v.1 p.3413-3422

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Summary: People using wheelchairs face barriers in their daily lives, many of which are created by people who surround them. Promoting positive attitudes towards persons with disabilities is an integral step in removing these barriers and improving their quality of life. In this context, persuasive games offer an opportunity of encouraging attitude change. We created a wheelchair-controlled persuasive game to study how embodied interaction can be applied to influence player attitudes over time. Our results show that the game intervention successfully raised awareness for challenges that people using wheelchairs face, and that embodied interaction is a more effective approach than traditional input in terms of retaining attitude change over time. Based on these findings, we provide design strategies for embodied interaction in persuasive games, and outline how our findings can be leveraged to help designers create effective persuasive experiences beyond games.

[25] How players value their characters in world of warcraft Gaming / Livingston, Ian J. / Gutwin, Carl / Mandryk, Regan L. / Birk, Max Proceedings of ACM CSCW 2014 Conference on Computer-Supported Cooperative Work and Social Computing 2014-02-15 v.1 p.1333-1343

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Summary: Characters in games such as World of Warcraft allow players to act in the game world and to interact with others. Game characters and avatars are a mediated form of self-representation for the player, but some research suggests that players also view characters in other ways that have to do with the kinds of value that the characters provide. To better understand the ways that players value their characters in an online environment, we carried out a semi-structured interview study of twenty World of Warcraft players. From our data we identify ten kinds of value that characters can provide -- including utility, investment, communication, memory, enjoyment, and representations of relationships, as well as value as an opportunity for experience, creativity, sociability, and self-expression. The analytical lens of value provides a new understanding of the ways that players appreciate characters in online multi-user worlds. Our results can help developers understand and enhance an element of multi-player games that contributes greatly to player experience and satisfaction.