Researching Virtual Playlands

1. Researching Virtual Playlands John Rice CECS 6220 Dr. Knezek

2. Rise of the Video Game • As computer power and graphics increased, sophisticated video games became possible • As broadband became widespread, online gaming grew more sophisticated • As video gaming grew into an industry that eclipsed Hollywood in profits, social scientists took increasing note

3. Research Paradigms • Social scientists studying the use of video games in education fall into one of several fields: • Cognitive Studies • Narratology • Representation • Ludology (Wolf & Perron, 2003)

4. Cognitive Studies • Cognitive studies of video games explore the relationship video games have with real world applications • Researchers apply the lenses of cognitive psychology to studying video games • Video games offering simulations of real world activities often interest cognitive studies researchers

5. Cognitive Studies • Cognitive studies remains one of the most interesting areas of research for video games • Prominent researchers include Henry Jenkins of MIT and Kurt Squire at U. Wisconsin, Madison

6. Narratology • Narratology concerns itself with using narrative studies to approach the research of video games • Narrative studies examine how we structure meaning through story telling • One of the most popular paradigms • Comparisons with story, film, and drama narratives

7. Narratology • One of the most acclaimed researchers who took a narratology approach was Gee (2003) • Book: What video games have to teach us about learning and literacy created a sensation • Gee blended cognitive measures with a narrative approach (his background is lit. studies) • “Games are far better suited for things our tests don’t cover”

8. Representation • Researchers exploring representation in video games are concerned with use of graphical elements and issues of engagement • Foundational work from Laurel (1991) • Heavy cross currents with research in Virtual Reality

9. Representation • Some of the more controversial aspects of video gaming can be explored through the field of representation • Sex, violence, alternate gender roles, etc. can all be explored through representative elements in video games, providing many opportunities for research

10. Ludology • Ludology is the study of the subcategory of video games within the broader context of all games • Ludologists propose a new paradigm for studying video games that supercedes previous ones co-opted for video game research

11. Ludology • A relatively new paradigm, advocates are arguing for terms and acceptance • A concise argument was laid out by Frasca’s chapter in The video game theory reader (2003)

12. Research Centers • MIT Media Lab - http://www.media.mit.edu/ • Serious Games Summit - http://www.seriousgames.org/ • Digital Games Research Association - http://www.digra.org/

13. Journals • Game Studies: The International Journal of Computer Games Research • www.gamestudies.org • International Journal of Intelligent Games & Simulation • http://www.scit.wlv.ac.uk/~cm1822/ijigs11.htm

14. Articles • Gee, J. P. (2003, May). High score education: Games, not school, are teaching kids to think. Wired, 11(05). • Lee J., Luchini, K., Michael, B., Norris, C., & Soloway, E. (2004). More than just fun and games: Assessing the value of educational video games in the classroom. In Proceedings from Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (pp. 1375 - 1378). Retrieved November 3, 2004 from http://portal.acm.org/citation.cfm?doid=985921.986068 • Squire, K. and Jenkins, H. (2003). Harnessing the power of games in education. IN>>SIGHT 3(1)

15. Books • Gee, J. P. (2003). What video games have to teach us about learning and literacy. New York: Palgrave Macmillan. • King, B & Borland, J. (2003). Dungeons and dreamers: The rise of computer game culture from geek to chic. New York: McGraw-Hill/Osborne. • Wolf, M.J.P. & Perron, B. (Eds.) (2003). The video game theory reader. New York: Routledge.