Psychologists and games researchers discuss the concept of role-playing and its effects. They explore tabletop and video games, community-building, personal growth, negotiation, and consent. Ad breaks feature Lucky Land Slots and Bakers. They discuss the future of Dungeons and Dragons and ways to encourage role-playing. They also address barriers, alternative games, and the transformative nature of role-playing. The guest's work and sponsors are highlighted.
Role-playing games can be transformative and therapeutic, offering opportunities for personal growth and emotional exploration.
Props and costumes enhance role-playing experiences, fostering immersion, authentic role-playing, and a sense of community.
Transformative play in role-playing games allows for personal and social change, challenging beliefs and promoting empathy and inclusivity.
Deep dives
Role-playing games as a transformative and therapeutic tool
Role-playing games, whether in tabletop or live-action form, have the potential to be transformative and therapeutic. They create immersive and embodied experiences that allow players to explore different aspects of their identity, engage in problem-solving, and build communities through play. These games can be used as vehicles for personal and social change, providing opportunities for personal growth, skill development, and emotional exploration. By creating safe spaces for players to inhabit fictional characters and worlds, role-playing games offer a unique platform to practice empathy, perspective-taking, and self-expression. The future of academic study in this field should focus on understanding the cognitive, psychological, and physiological processes involved in role-playing games, as well as exploring how these games can be used for targeted interventions and to imagine and shape alternate futures.
Building immersive experiences through props and costumes
Props and costumes can enhance role-playing experiences by creating a stronger connection between players and their characters. The use of physical props and costumes in tabletop or live-action role-playing games can help players immerse themselves in the game world and embody their characters more fully. This embodiment can trigger a deeper state of immersion and facilitate a more authentic and transformative role-playing experience. The physicality of props and costumes allows players to explore different aspects of their characters' identities and behaviors, leading to enhanced role-playing and emotional engagement. The use of props and costumes can also create a stronger sense of community within a group, as players visually signal their commitment to the game and share in the collective experience of role-playing.
The value of transformative play
Transformative play, where role-playing games serve as a vehicle for personal and social change, offers a rich and valuable avenue for exploration. Through these games, players can engage in personal growth, challenge their perceptions and beliefs, and practice alternative ways of being. Transformative play allows individuals to step outside their usual social roles and identities, providing an opportunity for self-exploration and self-expression. By intentionally designing games that encourage transformative play, game designers and researchers can create spaces for personal and social transformation and promote empathy, understanding, and inclusivity.
The power of immersive storytelling in role-playing games
Immersive storytelling is a key aspect of role-playing games that contributes to their transformative potential. In role-playing games like Dungeons & Dragons, players have the opportunity to create and inhabit complex characters, immerse themselves in detailed and dynamic game worlds, and engage in collaborative storytelling. Immersion into narratives allows players to explore different aspects of their characters, develop empathy, and experience personal growth through the challenges and choices presented in the game. Immersive storytelling in role-playing games invites players to engage in deep role-playing, where they can fully embody and express their characters' beliefs, motivations, and emotions, fostering a rich and impactful playing experience.
The future of role-playing game research
Ongoing research on role-playing games should continue to explore the cognitive, psychological, and social effects of these games on players. This includes investigating the impact of role-playing games on empathy, perspective-taking, identity development, and social interaction. Further research should also focus on developing and evaluating targeted interventions that use role-playing games for therapeutic purposes, such as promoting mental health and wellbeing, supporting social skills development, and facilitating personal growth. Exploring the potential of role-playing games as tools for social change, and imagining alternative futures through game design, are also promising areas of study. By understanding and harnessing the power of role-playing games, researchers can contribute to the development of innovative and impactful interventions, and shape the future of this unique and transformative medium.
What do psychologists and games researchers have to say about the idea of role-playing, when you pretend to take on another person's persona, point of view, thoughts, and state of mind? What effects can role-playing games have on us? Tabletop role-playing games like Dungeons & Dragons feature this as a central part of the experience, and some video games also ask you to do it.
