Jeroen Jansz

Gaming at a LAN event: the social context of playing video games

An exploratory survey was undertaken about the appeal of playing video games at a Local Area Network (LAN) event where personal computers are linked in order to play both face-to-face and online. First, we wanted to know who the visitors of a LAN event were, because there is hardly any research available about this class of gamers. Second, we wanted to know why they participated in a LAN event. The survey showed that LAN gamers were almost exclusively male, with a mean age of 19.5 years. They devoted about 2.6 hours each day to gaming. They were motivated by social contact and a need to know more about games. The competition motive was third in the total sample. A subgroup of heavy gamers obtained a higher score on competition. This article emphasizes the importance of the social context of gaming and interprets its results as a nuance of the stereotype of the solitary, adolescent gamer.

Parental mediation of children’s videogame playing: a comparison of the reports by parents and children

Through an Internet survey of 536 parent–child dyads, the authors researched which mediation strategies parents used to regulate videogaming by their children (8–18 years). Factor analyses revealed that both parents and children distinguished three types of parental mediation: (1) ‘restrictive mediation’, (2) ‘active mediation’, and (3) ‘co‐playing’. These strategies are comparable with mediation types that were established in research about television. Comparing the parents’ and children’s reports it was found that both groups had highly congruent views about the application of mediation. Parental mediation of videogaming was most strongly predicted by the child’s age and the parents’s game behavior. Furthermore, parents applied more restrictive and active mediation when they feared negative behavioral effects and more often co‐played with their children when they expected positive social‐emotional effects of gaming.

Parents' Interest in Videogame Ratings and Content Descriptors in Relation to Game Mediation

A B S T R A C T ■ An Internet survey of 765 parents examined (1) to what extent parents wanted to be informed by ratings of harmful videogames for their children (four to 18 years), (2) which content descriptors interested them, (3) which parents were most interested and (4) how parental mediation of the childs gaming related to their interest in ratings and content descriptors. The majority of parents thought it very necessary to have ratings. Warnings of realistic `gore and gross were considered most important, followed by warnings regarding alcohol/drugs, fantasy violence, bad language and, finally, nudity. A LISREL model showed that the ratings and most content descriptors were used as tools for restrictive and active parental mediation, in relation to parents ideas on negative game effects. The mediation strategy of social co-play was strongly associated with the parents own gaming and views on positive game effects. ■

The game experience

Publisher Summary nThe game industry is growing faster than the movie industry and the market of digital games grosses more than cinema box office receipts. The movie industry, as a whole, still outperforms the gaming industry. This is attributed primarily to ancillary revenues, such as DVDs and sales to TV networks and cable companies. The increasing popularity of gaming went hand in hand with the public expression of concerns about playing digital games. Parents, teachers, politicians, and many others were particularly concerned about the violence in games and about the addictive properties of gaming. Empirical research partly confirmed the worries about possible negative effects of violent content but failed to deliver substantial evidence for addiction to digital games. This chapter addresses the experiences that result from actually playing a game. The massive popularity of digital games stands witness to the fact that playing games is attractive for many people. This chapter proposes that gaming is an emotional experience that is intrinsically rewarding. In other words, gamers are motivated by the unfolding of the game itself, and they enjoy the accompanying feelings. Interestis crucial with respect to gaming. It dominates the gamer’s immediate experience during a game session as an emotion proper and it acts as a motivational disposition in between separate gaming experiences. This chapter briefly characterizes the game as a product and discusses the principal game features that may appeal to (potential) players. It also describes the actual game experience and the development of specific gaming expertise. Furthermore, it discusses the implications of being an expert gamer for the gamer’s identity and the themes that must be addressed in future research about the game experience.