Psychology of Video Games Podcast

The podcast discusses topics such as monetization through 15-second commercials in free to play games, the influence of phrasing on decision-making, the impact of color on performance in competitive sports, and promoting positive behavior in games through kudos and self-perception theory.

Explore the power of habit-forming games like Pokemon Go and how they create addictive experiences. Learn about the importance of friction and onboarding in game design, the role of variable rewards in platforms like Facebook and Twitter, and the psychology and ethics of monetizing addictive games. Discover the habit-forming nature of Snapchat and get insights on the speaker's book.

Lennart Nacke, a researcher from the University of Waterloo, discusses the use of biofeedback and psychophysiology in video games. They explore how physiological processes like heart rate and eye movement can be utilized by games to create new experiences. Topics also include measuring mental effort, incorporating physiological reactions into serious games, and using facial expression analysis for personalized gameplay.

Exploring gamification in learning environments, the podcast discusses how points, badges, and leaderboards can be both motivating and disruptive. They delve into unfair point allocation in a book series and highlight the importance of thoughtful implementation in educational and training programs. The difference between structural and content gamification is explored along with the role of self-determination theory. The speakers share their experiences playing various video games and discuss their upcoming book on instructional game design.

This podcast explores the impact of friendships and relationships formed in online games. It discusses the value and limitations of online relationships, the different types of online friendships, and the potential negative impact of online games on social skills. The hosts also share their excitement for upcoming game releases and discuss the development of cultural rules in games.

In this episode I talk with Ben Lewis Evans, a psychologist and UX researcher at Epic Games, about simulation sickness and virtual reality. We talk about what causes it and what limitations hardware and game designers have to design around in order to avoid it. Audio credits:"Robot Motivation" by The Polish Ambassador, licensed under Creative Commons: CC BY-NC-SA 3.0"Petulant March" by Kevin MacLeod Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0.Intense VR Game Challenges You to Save a Kitten from a Ledge

Hey. I've got a question for you: Why do you play games?That's going to be the topic of discussion in this episode of the podcast, with my guest Dr. Nick Yee from Quantic Foundry.  He's going to share some research that he and his colleagues have been doing around player types, gaming motivations, and personality types. Maybe you'll learn something about what makes your gamer soul tick. Audio Credits"Robot Motivation" by The Polish Ambassador, licensed under Creative Commons: CC BY-NC-SA 3.0"Bit Quest" by Kevin MacLeod Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0."Happy Happy Game Show" by Kevin MacLeod Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0Richard Bartle on Player Type Theory at CasualConnect 2012

Ever used video games to blow off some steam and recover from a hard day at work or school?  Psychologists who study stress and how we recover from it have noted that certain activities are better than others for helping us recharge our reserves and getting over stressful events. Now, some psychologists --such as Dr. Emily Collins, my guest on this episode-- are looking at how video games may be super effective at helping us recover from stress. And how some genres or types of games may do it better than others.More about the podcast here:http://www.psychologyofgames.com/podcast/Subscribe in iTunes here:https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/psychology-video-games-podcast/id976468994Audio Credits“Robot Motivation” by The Polish Ambassador, licensed under Creative Commons: CC BY-NC-SA 3.0http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/us/http://freemusicarchive.org/music/The_Polish_Ambassador/Diplomatic_Immunity/05_Robot_Motivation"Monkeys Spinning Monkeys" by Kevin MacLeod Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/us/http://incompetech.com/wordpress/2014/02/monkeys-spinning-monkeys/

Does controlling or experiencing violence in video games cause violence, aggression, or other acts of malice outside of the game? This is the main question that I discuss with my guest this episode, Christopher J. Ferguson, Ph.D. He is a prolific researcher and commentator on the topic of video game violence, and he shares his thoughts about the state of the research and whether or not we should be worried about letting kids watch violent TV or games.Plus, we have a side conversation into the topic of misogyny and other stereotyping in video game culture and whether being exposed to those elements is equivalent to seeing or controlling video game violence.More about the podcast here:http://www.psychologyofgames.com/podcast/Subscribe in iTunes here:https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/psychology-video-games-podcast/id976468994More about Christopher J. Furgeson's research:http://www.stetson.edu/other/faculty/profiles/christopher-ferguson.phpAudio Credits“Robot Motivation” by The Polish Ambassador, licensed under Creative Commons: CC BY-NC-SA 3.0http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/us/http://freemusicarchive.org/music/The_Polish_Ambassador/Diplomatic_Immunity/05_Robot_Motivation"Happy Happy Game Show" by Kevin MacLeod Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/us/http://incompetech.com/wordpress/2016/01/happy-happy-game-show/"Level Up!" by Kevin MacLeod Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/us/http://incompetech.com/wordpress/2015/03/level-up/"Over Under" by Kevin MacLeod Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/us/http://incompetech.com/music/royalty-f

This podcast explores the effects of video games on physical and mental health, including the benefits and potential harms of gaming, the impact of video games on social interactions, the link between video games and delayed gratification, and the potential influence of video games on workplace expectations and raising girl gamers.