۱- Introduction

۲- Method

۳- Results

۴- Conclusion Funding sources

References

Abstract

Qualitative interview data is presented in support of previously-published quantitative evidence that suggests commercial video games may be used to develop useful skills and competencies in undergraduate students. The purpose of the work described here was to document the attitudes of those students involved in the quantitative study and to explore how the game-based intervention was perceived. To this end, student attitudes to the use of specified games to develop communication skill, resourcefulness and adaptability are examined. A broadly positive perception of the games’ efficacy for skills development is revealed, and the aspects of game play that students believe contribute to skills development are discussed. These aspects include the need to communicate with team mates in order to succeed, and the fluid, unpredictable nature of in-game challenges. It is suggested that while the games played an important role in skills development, interaction between students, facilitated by game play, was also a significant factor.

Introduction

In Barr (2017), quantitative evidence is presented to suggest that commercial video games may be used to develop in students a number of useful skills and competencies: communication, resourcefulness and adaptability. Such skills are referred to as ‘graduate attributes’ (Barrie, 2006; Hughes & Barrie, 2010) and are generally associated with the employability of higher education graduates. The rationale behind the work described by Barr was that commercial video games are designed to exercise such skills. In that study, a randomised controlled experiment was used to measure the effects of playing selected games on the attainment of the specified graduate attributes. Undergraduate students were randomly assigned to either an intervention or a control group and previously validated, self-report instruments to measure adaptability, resourcefulness and communication skill were administered to both groups. The intervention group played specified, high quality video games under controlled conditions over an eightweek period. The selected titles comprised: Portal 2 (Valve Corporation, 2011), Team Fortress 2 (Valve Corporation, 2007), Gone Home (The Fullbright Company, 2013), Minecraft (Mojang, 2009), Papers, Please (Lucas Pope, 2013), Borderlands 2 (Gearbox Software, 2012), Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light (Crystal Dynamics, 2010), and Warcraft III (Blizzard Entertainment, 2002). The games were selected by presenting a panel of games scholars and games industry personnel with a list of the specified attributes and asking these experts to suggest games that might exercise such attributes. The suggested titles were then filtered based on logistical concerns, including hardware constraints (the specification of the computers used in the study) and network restrictions (availability of the ports required for online play). For example, both Minecraft and World of Warcraft (Blizzard Entertainment, 2004) were suggested as candidates for developing communication skills. However, while Minecraft was included in the study, the MMORPG (Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games) World of Warcraft was not, due to the technical challenges involved (an internet connection is essential to play, and the university infrastructure did not permit such a connection) and the steep learning curve associated with the game. With just 2 h of play per game, novice players would barely scratch the surface of World of Warcraft, and not experience the collaborative team-based questing that might exercise their communication skills.