Abstract:
This study examines the influence of players' age, gender, and gaming preferences and habits (from now on, “gaming preferences”) on the effectiveness of a specific videog...Show MoreMetadata
Abstract:
This study examines the influence of players' age, gender, and gaming preferences and habits (from now on, “gaming preferences”) on the effectiveness of a specific videogame that has been designed to increase the interest towards classical theater among teenagers. Using a validated instrument, participants were divided into four groups based on their gaming preferences: (1) Well-rounded (WR) gamers, who play all types of games often; (2) Hardcore players, who frequently tend to play first-person shooter (FPS) and sports games; (3) Casual players, who play moderately and tend to play music, social, and puzzle games; and (4) Non-gamers, who barely play videogames at all. Among all of the participants' personal factors (age, gender, and type of player) that were measured, only gaming preferences seemed to have a significant (p<;.05) positive influence on students' interest in theater-going. Neither age nor gender seemed to affect the outcomes. Casual and Well-rounded gamers scored higher in the game than Non-gamers and Hardcore players. Due to these results, we also explored whether the gaming profile affected traditional educational approaches. Traditional education worked better than videogames only for students who do not usually play videogames. This study suggests that gaming preferences may influence the effectiveness of different educational approaches. Knowing students' gaming preferences in advance may help educators find the best educational approach for each student.
Published in: IEEE Transactions on Learning Technologies ( Volume: 10, Issue: 2, 01 April-June 2017)
Funding Agency:
Complutense University of Madrid, Madrid, Spain
Borja Manero Iglesias received the bachelor's
degrees in physics (major in computer science) in 1999 from UCM (1999) and in dramatic arts (2007). Currently, he is
visiting researcher at Harvard University. Also, he is a teacher in the Department of Software Engineering and
Artificial Intelligence at the Complutense University in Madrid, Spain. His research interests focus on educational
games and their use in theater,...Show More
Borja Manero Iglesias received the bachelor's
degrees in physics (major in computer science) in 1999 from UCM (1999) and in dramatic arts (2007). Currently, he is
visiting researcher at Harvard University. Also, he is a teacher in the Department of Software Engineering and
Artificial Intelligence at the Complutense University in Madrid, Spain. His research interests focus on educational
games and their use in theater,...View more
University College of London, London, United Kingdom
Javier Torrente received the MSc and PhD degrees in computer
science from UCM. His PhD degree focused on how to reduce the cost of making digital games so that they are more
accessible for people with a disability. Currently, he works as a full-time researcher for University College London,
UK, and he was formerly a member of the e-UCM research group at UCM, Madrid, Spain. He has published more than 70
research papers...Show More
Javier Torrente received the MSc and PhD degrees in computer
science from UCM. His PhD degree focused on how to reduce the cost of making digital games so that they are more
accessible for people with a disability. Currently, he works as a full-time researcher for University College London,
UK, and he was formerly a member of the e-UCM research group at UCM, Madrid, Spain. He has published more than 70
research papers...View more
Game Center, New York University, NY 11201
Clara Fernández-Vara received the PhD degree in digital media
from the Georgia Institute of Technology in 2009. She is currently an associate professor at the Game Center, New York
University. Her research interest is focused on the application of close-reading methods and performance studies to
the study of videogames. Her work concentrates on adventure games, as well as strategies to integrate narrative in
digital e...Show More
Clara Fernández-Vara received the PhD degree in digital media
from the Georgia Institute of Technology in 2009. She is currently an associate professor at the Game Center, New York
University. Her research interest is focused on the application of close-reading methods and performance studies to
the study of videogames. Her work concentrates on adventure games, as well as strategies to integrate narrative in
digital e...View more
Complutense University of Madrid, Madrid, Spain
Baltasar Fernández-Manjón received the PhD degree in
physics from the Universidad Complutense de Madrid in 1996. He is a full professor of computer science at UCM and
director of the e-UCM e-learning research group. His research interest is focused on the applications of ICT in
education and in serious games and educational simulations applied to different domains (e.g., medicine, culture, and
languages). He is also w...Show More
Baltasar Fernández-Manjón received the PhD degree in
physics from the Universidad Complutense de Madrid in 1996. He is a full professor of computer science at UCM and
director of the e-UCM e-learning research group. His research interest is focused on the applications of ICT in
education and in serious games and educational simulations applied to different domains (e.g., medicine, culture, and
languages). He is also w...View more
Contents Complutense University of Madrid, Madrid, Spain
Borja Manero Iglesias received the bachelor's
degrees in physics (major in computer science) in 1999 from UCM (1999) and in dramatic arts (2007). Currently, he is
visiting researcher at Harvard University. Also, he is a teacher in the Department of Software Engineering and
Artificial Intelligence at the Complutense University in Madrid, Spain. His research interests focus on educational
games and their use in theater, cinema, and dance.
Borja Manero Iglesias received the bachelor's
degrees in physics (major in computer science) in 1999 from UCM (1999) and in dramatic arts (2007). Currently, he is
visiting researcher at Harvard University. Also, he is a teacher in the Department of Software Engineering and
Artificial Intelligence at the Complutense University in Madrid, Spain. His research interests focus on educational
games and their use in theater, cinema, and dance.View more
University College of London, London, United Kingdom
Javier Torrente received the MSc and PhD degrees in computer
science from UCM. His PhD degree focused on how to reduce the cost of making digital games so that they are more
accessible for people with a disability. Currently, he works as a full-time researcher for University College London,
UK, and he was formerly a member of the e-UCM research group at UCM, Madrid, Spain. He has published more than 70
research papers in academic journals and conferences in the fields of serious games, HCI, and accessibility.
Javier Torrente received the MSc and PhD degrees in computer
science from UCM. His PhD degree focused on how to reduce the cost of making digital games so that they are more
accessible for people with a disability. Currently, he works as a full-time researcher for University College London,
UK, and he was formerly a member of the e-UCM research group at UCM, Madrid, Spain. He has published more than 70
research papers in academic journals and conferences in the fields of serious games, HCI, and accessibility.View more
Game Center, New York University, NY 11201
Clara Fernández-Vara received the PhD degree in digital media
from the Georgia Institute of Technology in 2009. She is currently an associate professor at the Game Center, New York
University. Her research interest is focused on the application of close-reading methods and performance studies to
the study of videogames. Her work concentrates on adventure games, as well as strategies to integrate narrative in
digital environment through interaction and spatial design.
Clara Fernández-Vara received the PhD degree in digital media
from the Georgia Institute of Technology in 2009. She is currently an associate professor at the Game Center, New York
University. Her research interest is focused on the application of close-reading methods and performance studies to
the study of videogames. Her work concentrates on adventure games, as well as strategies to integrate narrative in
digital environment through interaction and spatial design.View more
Complutense University of Madrid, Madrid, Spain
Baltasar Fernández-Manjón received the PhD degree in
physics from the Universidad Complutense de Madrid in 1996. He is a full professor of computer science at UCM and
director of the e-UCM e-learning research group. His research interest is focused on the applications of ICT in
education and in serious games and educational simulations applied to different domains (e.g., medicine, culture, and
languages). He is also working in the application of e-learning standards to the integration of those technologies in
e-learning systems. He is a senior member of the IEEE.
Baltasar Fernández-Manjón received the PhD degree in
physics from the Universidad Complutense de Madrid in 1996. He is a full professor of computer science at UCM and
director of the e-UCM e-learning research group. His research interest is focused on the applications of ICT in
education and in serious games and educational simulations applied to different domains (e.g., medicine, culture, and
languages). He is also working in the application of e-learning standards to the integration of those technologies in
e-learning systems. He is a senior member of the IEEE.View more