Effects of Self-Efficacy Supporting Video Game Elements on Control Beliefs
| dc.contributor.advisor | Klarkowski, Madison | |
| dc.contributor.advisor | Phillips, Cody | |
| dc.contributor.committeeMember | Stavness, Ian | |
| dc.contributor.committeeMember | Vassileva, Julita | |
| dc.contributor.committeeMember | Bath, Jon | |
| dc.creator | Samadi, Maryam | |
| dc.creator.orcid | 0009-0008-8072-0927 | |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2024-02-27T15:56:16Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2024-02-27T15:56:16Z | |
| dc.date.copyright | 2024 | |
| dc.date.created | 2024-02 | |
| dc.date.issued | 2024-02-27 | |
| dc.date.submitted | February 2024 | |
| dc.date.updated | 2024-02-27T15:56:16Z | |
| dc.description.abstract | Self-efficacy---i.e., the perception of one’s ability to accomplish a specific task---is an important factor in developing motivation and showing resilience in facing challenges. This construct, along with perceived competence and dominance, makes up a collection of constructs we refer to as `control beliefs'. Control beliefs demonstrably enhance motivation, performance, and wellbeing outcomes. Despite control beliefs’ prominence in sports and personality psychology, the construct has yet to be explored holistically in games scholarship. The goal of this research is to create a theory-driven design framework to enhance player experience and wellbeing. To test the influence of self-efficacy and control beliefs on player experience outcomes, we developed a framework consisting of game elements associated with enhancing self-efficacy (SE) and integrated the elements into a bespoke game artifact, \textit{Space Oddity}. Subsequently, we conducted two studies, with the second study being more comprehensive than the first. In both studies, we implemented two conditions: one where players engaged with our game featuring the SE-supporting framework (SE condition) and the other without the framework (NSE condition). The first study showed that game enjoyment in the SE condition was significantly higher than in the NSE condition but self-efficacy was not different between the groups. In the second study, following exposure to one of two game conditions, 120 participants responded to inventories assessing enjoyment and player control beliefs. In the SE condition, we observed higher levels of perceived competence, dominance, and enjoyment. Additionally, domain self-efficacy was significantly higher in players with high baseline general self-efficacy (baseline GSE) than those with low baseline GSE. Our results also demonstrated increases in general self-efficacy and dominance for all participants, while domain self-efficacy increased among participants with low baseline GSE who were in the SE condition. Our findings illuminate the influence of SE-supporting elements in enhancing player control beliefs and enjoyment, contributing valuable design insight for reducing the perceived difficulty of challenging games. | |
| dc.format.mimetype | application/pdf | |
| dc.identifier.uri | https://hdl.handle.net/10388/15502 | |
| dc.language.iso | en | |
| dc.subject | video game | |
| dc.subject | self-efficacy | |
| dc.subject | dominance | |
| dc.subject | competence | |
| dc.subject | player experience | |
| dc.subject | control beliefs | |
| dc.title | Effects of Self-Efficacy Supporting Video Game Elements on Control Beliefs | |
| dc.type | Thesis | |
| dc.type.material | text | |
| thesis.degree.department | Computer Science | |
| thesis.degree.discipline | Computer Science | |
| thesis.degree.grantor | University of Saskatchewan | |
| thesis.degree.level | Masters | |
| thesis.degree.name | Master of Science (M.Sc.) |