Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Game habit'

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Fundo Mackenzie de Pesquisa
This research aims to present comments about the nature of freedom in the game between man and apparatus. Starting from a realistic method of investigation considering the movement of the game as part of a real universe, where the relationship of continuity and alterity are conditions of this ludic activity we tried to estabilish theoretical relations between Charles S. Pierce and Vilém Flusser aiming to study principles from this game, for exemple, the principles of freedom, necessity and automation; analysing then, its vital importance to the origin of a habit. At the same moment, in addition to observe a brief history of the concept of the game and include into the research a conception of a game as ludic and free activity, we aims, through a careful conceptual analysis, the metaphysical function of the apparatus. Finally, we reaffirm the relationship of alterity in the game as a possible way to freedom, we highlight our methodological and epistemological considerations and we also raise some questions about the proper research in the direction to have if become some type of method.
Esta pesquisa busca apresentar considerações sobre o caráter da liberdade no jogo entre homem e aparelho. Partindo de um método de investigação realista considerando o movimento do jogo como parte de um universo real, onde as relações de continuidade e alteridade são condições a esta atividade lúdica tentamos estabelecer relações teóricas entre Charles S. Peirce e Vilém Flusser tendo por objetivo estudar os princípios decorrentes deste jogo, a saber, os princípios de liberdade, necessidade e automação; observando, em seguida, a vital importância destes para a origem de um hábito. Ainda neste momento, além de observarmos uma breve história do conceito de jogo e incluirmos à pesquisa uma concepção de jogo como atividade lúdica e livre, buscamos compreender, por meio de uma cuidadosa análise conceitual, a função metafísica do aparelho. Finalmente, reafirmamos a relação de alteridade no jogo como um possível caminho à liberdade, destacamos nossas considerações epistemológicas e metodológicas e também levantamos algumas questões sobre a própria pesquisa, no sentido de ter se tornado algum tipo de método.

Gli agenti virtuali sono sempre più utilizzati come mentori nelle interazioni umane simulate che formano all’utilizzo di strategie di comunicazione efficaci. Tuttavia, replicare un livello di somiglianza umana soddisfacente rimane una sfida. In particolare, l'effetto Uncanny Valley si riferisce alla spiacevole sensazione provata dall’utente che interagisce con un Agente Virtuale dall’aspetto non del tutto realistico (Seyama & Nagayama, 2007). La letteratura ha descritto diversi fattori intervenienti, comprese le caratteristiche statiche e dinamiche dell'Agente, ma anche differenze individuali nel grado di predisposizione ad antropomorfizzare un Agente (ad esempio, Epley, Waytz, & Cacioppo, 2007; Kätsyri, Förger, Mäkäräinen e Takala, 2015). Negli ultimi decenni, i videogiochi hanno rappresentato una fonte di intrattenimento per un numero crescente di persone e l'obiettivo di questa tesi è stato quello di confermare se le abitudini di gioco potessero essere considerate tra i fattori intervenienti. L'industria dei videogiochi ha guidato l'innovazione tecnologica che consente la sintesi vocale e facciale ad alta fedeltà di Agenti Virtuali in prodotti di intrattenimento. Tali tecnologie spesso non sono disponibili per i laboratori di ricerca più piccoli che fanno affidamento su risorse limitate. Pertanto, la presente tesi ha esplorato anche la possibilità di individuare elementi essenziali che non richiedono interventi costosi in termini di denaro e tempo ma che possono aumentare la percezione della qualità dell’Agente Virtuale. Oggetto principale di questa tesi è stato ENACT (Marocco, Pacella, Dell'Aquila, & Di Ferdinando, 2015), un'interazione umana simulata online per la formazione di strategie di negoziazione. In ENACT, i partecipanti hanno cinque turni di conversazione con un agente virtuale che comunica attraverso una combinazione di quattro diverse espressioni facciali, 24 gesti e 10 diverse posture del corpo e direzioni dello sguardo. La presente tesi comprende due studi sperimentali, che esplorano l'efficacia dell’implementazione di funzionalità a basso budget negli Agenti Virtuali, i.e., battiti di ciglia casuali (blinking) e una comunicazione vocale non semantica (gibberish) che accompagni la comunicazione scritta. Due campioni, rispettivamente, di 50 e 60 partecipanti maschi, tutti di età compresa tra i 18 ei 35 anni, sono stati reclutati e preliminarmente suddivisi in giocatori abituali e non abituali in base alle loro ore di gioco settimanali medie. Una volta assegnati in modo casuale al gruppo sperimentale o di controllo, i partecipanti hanno interagito con l'Agente virtuale e hanno completato i questionari relativi alla sua valutazione e alla qualità percepita di ENACT come prodotto educativo. I risultati indicano che la semplice introduzione di battiti di ciglia in momenti casuali dell'interazione con un agente virtuale sembra influenzare moderatamente la percezione dell'utente del realismo dell’Agente. Inoltre, nei casi in cui i moderni motori vocali di sintesi vocale non sono disponibili, sembra consigliabile fare affidamento su una forma di comunicazione di solo testo per gli agenti virtuali invece di una comunicazione basata su incomprensioni. I risultati suggeriscono anche che le abitudini di gioco potrebbero avere un ruolo di mediazione nella percezione delle qualità degli agenti virtuali. Tuttavia, le abitudini di gioco potrebbero non semplicemente imporre standard più elevati ai giocatori, i quali, invece, potrebbero sperimentare la zona del "troppo reale per il comfort" in modo diverso, assegnando di conseguenza diversi standard sociali attesi e aspettative normative agli agenti virtuali con cui interagiscono. Tali risultati confermano che la percezione della somiglianza umana di un Agente è una questione complessa e dimensionale, e quindi la necessità di includere la precedente alfabetizzazione di gioco nei fattori che intervengono nella percezione della stranezza.
Virtual Agents have been increasingly used as deliverers of notions in Simulated Human Interactions training effective communication strategies. Nevertheless, replicating the level of human-likeness required to "convince users (…) that a virtual human is the real thing" (Ruhland et al., 2015) remains a challenge. In particular, the Uncanny Valley effect refers to the observer's unpleasant impression of a virtual being with an almost, but not entirely, realistic human form (Seyama & Nagayama, 2007). Previous literature has described several intervening factors in the perception of uncanniness, including the Agent's static and dynamic features, but also individual differences in the degree of predisposition to anthropomorphize an Agent (e.g., Epley, Waytz, & Cacioppo, 2007; Kätsyri, Förger, Mäkäräinen, & Takala, 2015). During the last decades, video games have been representing an entertainment source for a growing number of people, and this dissertation's objective has been to confirm whether game habits might be considered among intervening factors. The video game industry has been driving technological innovation allowing for high-fidelity face and voice synthesis of Virtual Agents in Entertainment products. Such technologies are often not available to smaller research laboratories relying on limited resources. Therefore, the present dissertation has also explored the possibility of identifying "easy wins" on the short development run, essential elements that do not require expensive interventions in terms of money and time but can increase the perception of the Virtual Agent's quality. ENACT (Marocco, Pacella, Dell'Aquila, & Di Ferdinando, 2015), an online Simulated Human Interaction for the training of Negotiation strategies, has been used as the main object of this dissertation. In ENACT, trainees take five conversation turns with a Virtual Agent that communicates through a combination of four different facial expressions, 24 gestures, and ten different body postures and gaze directions. The present dissertation includes two experimental studies, exploring the effectiveness of low budget implementations of Virtual Agent’s features, i.e., random eye blinks and spoken gibberish accompanying written communication. Two samples of, respectively, 50 and 60 male participants, all aged between 18 and 35, have been recruited and preliminarily divided into habitual video game players and non-habitual video game players according to their mean weekly gameplay hours. Once randomly assigned to the experimental or control group, participants interacted with the Virtual Agent and completed the questionnaires related to its uncanniness evaluation and ENACT's perceived quality as an educational product. Results indicate that the mere introduction of eye blinks in random moments of the interaction with a Virtual Agent seems to moderately affect the user's perception of the Agents' realism. Moreover, in cases when modern text-to-speech voice engines are not available, it seems advisable to rely on a text-only form of communication for Virtual Agents instead of a gibberish-based communication. Results also suggest that video game habits might have a mediating role in the perception of Virtual Agents' qualities. Nevertheless, game habits might not simply posit higher standards to players but, instead, they might experience the "too real for comfort" zone differently, consequently assigning different expected social standards and normative expectations to Virtual Agents they interact with. Such results confirm that the perception of an Agent's human-likeness is a complex and dimensional matter, therefore including previous gaming literacy into the factors intervening in the perception of uncanniness.

This thesis introduces the innovative idea of the use of computer games and interactive entertainment by second-and third-age adults, specifically in the area of game content and interaction. This form of entertainment and technologies has become varied recently, with increased and widening participation of groups such as older adults of differing ages. The purposes of using technology involve well-being, intergenerational relationships and learning; these are some aspects primarily associated with the study of gerontology and game studies. This investigation encompassed two phases. Phase One examined the type of computer games older adults would like to play relating to hobbies, dreams and interests. Qualitative and quantitative data was collected in a step-by-step approach enabling participants to design their own game idea in an informal, jargon-free environment allowing for ease of understanding and coherence. Phase Two of the investigation involved older adults playing one of two consoles (Wii and PS-2). The games chosen were from the sports genre (golf, tennis and boxing) and were required to play for 15 minutes each. Results from Phase One indicated that participants were able to devise and design a number of game genres, and having prior knowledge of gaming did not necessarily aid when trying to design a game concept. Results from Phase Two indicated participants’ playing on the Wii was easier due to the nature of the console pad, rather than the traditional game pad used on the PS-2. Qualitative and quantitative data analysis interaction mechanism was far more influential on participants’ experience of flow than content. Extensive technological developments have enabled audiences in recent years to interact with gaming platforms easier than before, using motion sensor and natural body movement during game play. Preliminary design guidelines established from this investigation stipulate a multitude of aspects relating to interaction and content to enhance the experience of gaming for older adults.

This paper aims to provide a foundation in regard to information and cause correlation for future research about player retention and game session times based on visual properties. (such as colour values) This study can later be applied within software development. An online quantitative survey about play sessions and player habits is conducted and the conduct of this research is aimed at helping art directors make conscious and deliberate choices about the art styles for products where the visuals may impact player retention and game sessions. By knowing how visual elements such as colour values, shapes and contrast impact game play intensity and player engagement, and ultimately the end time spent during play sessions, art directors can make informed decisions to help impact player behaviours and habits.The paper includes subjects such as colour effects on humans (mental and physical), how human eye sight functions and how this should affect designs, effective use of visuals, eye fatigue, and visual communication.This study of visual properties and play sessions concludes that visuals have a definitive impact on how the game is perceived and processed by the player, leading to situations where the same mechanics can be much more intensive if presented using specific forms of visuals.
Uppsatsen är ämnad att skapa en grund för information och korrelationer mellan speltider och bibehållande spelsessioner baserat på visuella egenskaper (ex färgvalörer). En undersökning av spelsessioner och spelarvanor är utförd med sikte på att hjälpa art directors att göra medvetna och avsiktliga beslut om spelutseende för produkter där det visuella kan påverka spelsessioner. Genom att veta hur visuella element, så som färgvalörer, former och kontrast påverkar spelintensitet och spelarengagemang och slutgiltigt tiden spenderad under spelsessioner, så kan art directors göra informerade beslut för att påverka beteende och vanor.Uppsatsen inkluderar områden såsom färgeffekter på människor (mentala och fysiska), ögonfunktioner och hur dessa borde påverka design, effektivt användande av grafik, ögontrötthet och visuell kommunikation.Denna studie av visuella egenskaper och speltider drar slutsatsen att visuella effekter har en definitiv inverkan på hur spelet uppfattas och bearbetas av spelaren, vilket leder till situationer där samma spelmekaniker kan vara intensivare om dessa presenteras på specifika visuella sätt.

The aim of this study was to investigate 10-14 year old Thai School children’s habits related to television, computer games and eating, and to make comparisons regarding these issues between genders as well as between a rural and an urban area of Thailand. A descriptive comparative, cross-sectional study with a quantitative method was used. Data were collected at two schools, one in Bangkok and another in Ayuttahaya, Thailand. A purposive sample consisting of 441 participants was included in the study, from grade 5, 6 and 7. The chosen theoretical framework was Virginia Henderson´s nursing theory. The result showed that most children watch television 1-4 hours/day and play computer games 30min-1hour/day. Significant differences between the genders or areas regarding television viewing were not found. Habits of playing computer games were similar in the urban and rural area, although boys played more computer games than girls. The children in the urban and rural area ate quite healthy food regarding intake of fruits and vegetables. However fast food and snacks while watching television and playing computer games were more common among children in urban area than rural area. A different between genders was also found, showing that girls eat more than boys, both healthy alternatives and more unhealthy while watching TV and playing computer games.  Limitation and reduction of television watching and playing computer games are needed for the children and also motivation to more physical activity as well as healthier food choices.

Etheostoma spectabile, E. punctulatum, and Cottus carolinae were sampled Mar., 1983, - Feb., 1984, in Flint Creek, Oklahoma. Immature E. spectabile ate primarily microcrustaceans, while mature fishes relied more on mayflies and amphipods. Juvenile E. punctulatum fed upon mayflies, amphipods, and Asellus. Mature E. punctulatum ate primarily mayflies, and other relatively larger prey. Cottus carolinae consumed chironomids almost exclusively in Jan. - Feb., 1984, while mayflies were predominant the remainder of the year. No significant habitat partitioning between the two darters, and seasonal habitat segregation between C. carolinae and the two darters was found. Dietary overlap between the darters was significantly correlated (p<0.0005) to differences in x prey sizes.

Thesis (M.A.)--East Tennessee State University, 2004.
Title from electronic submission form. ETSU ETD database URN: etd-0331104-085211 Includes bibliographical references. Also available via Internet at the UMI web site.

This research is based on the following research question: What are the pupils’ thoughts about their gaming habits and possible learning situations in connection with their gaming? The study is based on literature on the subject and on two interviews with five youths who are between sixteen and seventeen years of age. The conclusions that can be drawn from my research question are:- Learning could take place in different domains and be put into different contexts. Hence, language learnt from playing video games, could be applied on domains outside of the game, i.e. implicit learning in terms of using a foreign language when communicating with other players can become tacit knowledge that the learner can apply on settings outside of the game. Also, social skills learnt from the structure of a game like World of Warcraft can be used in a formal educational setting. As a video game is multimodal in its nature there are benefits from also using other multimodal material in formal education, as many of the pupils are familiar and used to the same sort of text.- There are also problems connected to informal learning. The informants in this study describe how their interest in video games often clashes with their formal education. Another aspect is of course how the quality of the content learnt within an informal setting is being supervised, in contrast to how the formal education works with a trained teacher and a set curriculum that carefully explains how the learning should become available for the learner. Finally, one of the informants explains how his writing skills has become worse because of his informal training of English, since he wants to use smilies and abbreviations in formal text writing.

Digital games are often considered a pastime activity with little to no real or tangible benefits. This, however, is contrary to studies on the usefulness of digital games in second language (L2) learning. There are several aspects of L2 learning that are affected positively by gaming, as well as other extramural English (EE) activities. One of these aspects is vocabulary, which has been proven to be substantially improved by gaming through incidental learning.  Collocations are often referred to as word pairs that co-occur more frequently than any other two words. The definition of a collocation is a contested subject, making research and theories around collocations widespread and varied depending on what definition a given author subscribes to. In the present study Howarth’s (1996) definition of collocations has been used. The hard-to-define nature of collocations extends into the act of teaching - collocations are rarely taught because they follow no set rule or pattern. This means that L2 learners must acquire their collocation knowledge incidentally, either in the classroom or through EE activities.   The present study aims to investigate the relationship between EE activities, primarily gaming, and the collocation knowledge of 87 Swedish teenagers in upper compulsory school and upper secondary school. This was done through a Productive Collocation Test (PCK) as well as a questionnaire. The results of the study show that students who engage in EE activities are more knowledgeable in terms of collocations than those who do not. Additionally, out of the EE activities included in the questionnaire gaming seems to be the best way to acquire collocation knowledge.   The present study concludes that there is a connection between EE activities, especially gaming, and collocation knowledge. Informants that claimed to spend more time per week playing digital games generally scored higher on the collocation test. This was also true for the students who claimed to spend a considerable amount of time on visual media per week. These informants also had knowledge of collocations that very few of the respondents knew, particularly the students who partake in gaming. The findings of the present study suggest that digital games could be used as a tool for teaching collocations. However, more research is required to carry this idea further.

Supaplex is a single player video-game released at the beginning of the 90's which known as a challenging puzzle game developed for MS-DOS and Amiga. Although Supaplex did not get an intense interest and did not become a "POP" icon like PacMan or Super Mario or Sonic during the 90's, it was quite popular among people who like puzzle games such as Boulder Dash. This paper aims to revive this nostalgic video-game and show if Supaplex help to improve the development of logical thinking in primary school children. This paper examines how can Supaplex effect on primary school children's way of developing problem-solving techniques. Moreover, this case study examines primary school children's playing habits at their own homes. The paper is based on an ethnographic case study in which I collaborated with a Turkish family to let their children play Supaplex at their home as a spare-time activity approximately five-month long period. During this five-month period, I went to their home and played Supaplex with the triplets.

Any activities where English can be encountered in outside of school, have been labeled by Sundqvist (2009) as “extramural English activities”. One of these activities is playing games (both digital and board games), which in accordance to the research by Sundqvist (2009) and Sundqvist and Sylvén (2012) has a great impact on the learner’s English proficiency. In accordance to these prior findings, the focus of this degree project is on the gaming habits of year three students in Swedish elementary school. After presenting a theoretical background and key elements from earlier research, I examine to what extend the students play digital games, what type of games are played and most importantly; do students in year three play digital games in English? Further on, I investigate the student’s vocabulary proficiency and connect the two parts of my research together, searching for correlations between time spent gaming and vocabulary depth. This degree project also includes a gender aspect and compares gaming habits and vocabulary proficiency of girls and boys, along with interviews with four teachers and their perception on students’ participation in extramural activities and English motivation.

The task manager Habitica was studied to explain 1) How Habitica motivates by satisfying the psychological needs identified by SDT and 2) Why users keep using Habitica. Based on theories of gamification, motivation and the theoretical framework METUX an interview study was conducted with 10 participants followed by a thematic analysis. Personalization, avatars, responsibility toward party members and different rewards were identified as motivating factors. However, some participants experienced the opposite with some of the factors mentioned. The motivating factors identified by the study could be connected to one or more psychological needs, based on the theoretical framework of the study. More research is necessary to determine if the findings apply to other settings outside of the context of the study.
Uppgiftshanteraren Habitica studerades för att svara på: 1) Hur tjänsten motiverar genom att tillfredsställa psykologiska behov från SDT och 2) Varför användare fortsätter att använda Habitica. Studien utgick från teorier om gamification, motivation och ramverket METUX. En intervjustudie utfördes med tio användare varpå en tematisk analys utfördes. Personlig anpassning, avatarer, socialt ansvar och olika belöningar identifierades som motiverande faktorer. Däremot hade vissa av dessa faktorer motsatt effekt i vissa fall. Motiverande faktorer som identifierats genom studien kunde kopplas till ett eller flera psykologiska behov. Dessa kopplingar gjordes utifrån studiens teoretiska ramverk. Mer forskning behövs för att avgöra om den här studiens fynd gör sig gällande i andra kontexter och i ett större sammanhang.

In 2K Games’ Bioshock (2007) the player, as the protagonist Jack, is thrown into a dystopian, futuristic alternate history of America. Rapture is an underwater city saturated in music: popular songs from the mid twentieth century; classical-style soundtrack pieces composed by Garry Schyman; characters humming, singing, whistling or playing instruments; musical vending machines; and even the sounds of whales and other creatures all participate in forming a textured soundscape. The songs from the 1930s - 50s used throughout Bioshock recall a real-world cultural environment—a popular music culture that is both comfortably recognizable yet strangely unfamiliar. They occur within the game world and are heard by the player and game characters, and thus the songs are diegetic or “screen music.” In Bioshock, such music is an explicit component of narrative production, game environment creation, and player immersion. Significantly, diegetic music participates in the construction of narrative through a constant interplay or negotiation with the video game’s other elements—visual, textual, ludic—and ultimately functions as a distinct discourse able to mediate for Jack/the player between contesting factors, via established conventional codes of musical, cultural, film, and now video game signification. Bioshock’s use of music initiates a pre-game discourse during installation and prior to every game session in the disc-loading scenes, and this musical discourse is continued throughout the narrative. The story’s opening and descent into Rapture further establishes and “naturalizes” the presence of diegetic music as part of the story being told, and as a vital component of the audio-visual environment enhances player immersion. At the same time, these opening instances and subsequent occurrences of diegetic music at significant points in the story demonstrate that music’s culturally encoded emotive potential produces ironic and poignant effects, while its lyrical intertextuality generates narratological and ludic commentary in various song/scene pairings.

碩士
國立嘉義大學
幼兒教育學系研究所
99
The purpose of this study was attempted to investigate the situations of exercise and game curriculum in the kindergarten, corresponding problems and coping strategies discovered accordingly. Main purposes were to explore the possible problems and coping strategies finding from the teaching portfolio and the growth conditions for instructors and children in the exercise and game curriculum. There are six findings based on this action research. 1. Connecting of learning activity and life experience will make better effect. 2. It is helpful to develop the children’s concept of exercise and interest in exercise through various teaching activities. 3. The children could show their achievement at a relaxing environment during playing the game and the teacher understood children’s learning situations at the same time. 4. The children could strengthen the abilities of recognizing words and exercise through the word recognizing games. 5. Parent-child relationship and learning achievement can be enhanced by the learning-sheet. 6. Good relationship between parents and instructors made teaching activities fluently. Several suggestions are revealed for kindergarten instructors, parents, kindergarten institutions and future research.. Keywords: kindergarten, Exercise Game Program, Exercise Habits

Thesis (Ed.D.)--State University of New York at Buffalo, 2007.
Title from PDF title page (viewed on Nov. 16, 2007) Available through UMI ProQuest Digital Dissertations. Thesis adviser: Hoot, James L. Includes bibliographical references.

碩士
長榮大學
運動休閒管理學系碩士班
98
The Effects of the 2009 Kaohsiung World Games on Junior High School Students’ Exercise Behavior & Habit – A Study with the Application of the Trans-Theoretical Model (TTM) Abstract It was sincerely hoped that the 2009 Kaohsiung World Games has carried enough of zeal and enthusiasm to the exercise behavior & habit in youth. With this hope the researchers in this study proposed a policy change which could help correcting the problems of insufficient exercise time, youth obesity, sedentary life style and dropping the chronic disease. Hoping that would in turn to bring in better physical fitness and health in youth in the future.The research tools used in this study including: 1.Exercise Habit Survey chart, Exercise Behavior Participation Level chart and Trans-Theoretical Model (TTM); 2.Subjects in this study including junior HS students and PE teachers. 540 surveys were handed out to the student subjects in the study and 531 had been submitted, returning rate was 98% in which 88% of the surveys were effective. To the 5 PE teachers, an interview method was carried out. 3. SPSS 12.0 computer was used to do the data process & analysis in this study and significant level was set on α=.05. (1) Participants of exercise behavior stage distribution, to prepare a maximum of 232 people (49%), followed by the maintenance of 118 (24%), action of 74 (15%), with only 25 (5.3%) The intent of is 24 (5.1%) were the least. (2) Basically, the study of sports participation behavior significantly different (p <.05). (3) Participants different stages of exercise behavior and exercise socio-psychological relationships between variables, including changes in methods (cognitive change and behavior change), motion perceived benefits, perceived exercise barriers, exercise self-efficacy, from the total score of view and exercise behavior stage of the scale were significantly different (p <.05). (4) Subjects of athletes previously participated in the 2009 Kaohsiung World Games continued to do the same training include: Billiards 17(28.5%), Frisbee 9 (15.3%), Pétanque 6 (10.2%), gymnastic 5(8.5%) and tag-war 4 (6.8%).In sum, all subjects participating in our 2009 Kaohsiung sports Trans- Theoretical Model have gained significant improvement in all exercise behavior modification charts. With that finding we conclude that good government sports policies lead to good sports habit and the Trans-Theoretical Model is good for studying exercise behavior & habit. Keywords:2009 Kaohsiung World Games, adolescents, Trans-Theoretical Model, Exercises Behavior