Author:

Keywords:

Games, Mediors, Older adults, Seniors, Uses and gratifications, Enjoyment, Life-span Perspective, Game design

Abstract:

This dissertation distances itself from a stereotypical view that states that the majority of the audience of digital games consists out of children and young men with a fascination for computer technology. This assumption contrasts with various market studies that are claiming that these age groups are only a small portion of the actual audience. According to such studies, digital games have become a leisure activity for all age groups. Correspondingly, the average gamer has been estimated to be around 30 years of age.Academic research has nevertheless focused on young age groups, such as children, teenagers and young adults, in its efforts to describe and understand the audience of digital games. Studies targeting older gamers have almost exclusively emphasized non-playing adults, and often frail elderly. By focusing on the adoption of the medium by new (and older) age groups, these studies have neglected to evaluate the gaming experiences of the existing older audience of digital games. Only a handful of studies researched the way in which digital games have been integrated in the daily lives of older adults. Unfortunately, the results of these studies are incomplete and often contradicting.This dissertation has attempted to extend the findings of previous research, by means of an explorative study of the different meanings that digital games hold in the lives of Flemish quinquagenarians. In the context of this dissertation, the word ‘meaning’ refers to social, psychological and media-specific aspects of gaming, that are relevant to the players. More specifically, the term is used to refer to the motivation for gaming, the social and personal contexts that lead towards such motivation, different instances of playing behavior (including content preferences), and any gratifications that are the result of playing games. The objective of this doctorate was threefold:- The research project wanted to offer a detailed description of the meanings that gamers between 50 and 70 years of age associate with digital games.- Through analysis of these meanings and integration with existing theoretical frameworks, the dissertation aimed to provide an explanatory framework for these meanings. - Finally, the research project intended to classify the older audience of digital games, by means of the explanatory framework that was developed in order to satisfy the second objective.The first part of the research project was a preliminary quantitative internet study, consisting out of 124 respondents between 50 and 70 years of age. The average age of the sample was 58.2 years, while 65.8% of the respondents were women. The questionnaire explored the contextual age, general media use, playing motives and content preferences of the respondents. The aim of this study was to construct a preliminary view of the older audience of digital games in Flanders, in order to select rich cases for qualitative research. The average player in the sample used digital games as a way to interactively challenge themselves on their computers, for about an hour and a half each day. The majority of the sample referred to puzzle games and adaptations of traditional games when asked for their favorite games. Nevertheless, the study was able to identify a smaller group of players that played a broader category of ‘hardcore’ games. These respondents emphasized the importance of the narrative aspects of digital games, as well as interactive challenges. Finally, the study reported how a preference for the fictional elements of digital games correlated with limited financial means or mobility issues. The quantitative study was used to select a total of 35 rich cases for qualitative research. This second and larger part of this study relied on the methodological principles of Grounded Theory, an iterative research method aimed towards theory building. A descriptive framework (containing the meanings of digital games for an older audience) was constructed by means of semi-structured in-depth interviews and observations. The meanings were structured using four themes : 1) the broader time expenditure of the players, 2) their social context, 3) their content preferences, and 4) the extent to which these meanings were continous or variable during the lifespan.The descriptive framework was integrated with existing theoretical perspectives in order to develop a theoretical model that explains the meanings that were identified during the study. This model was partially based on developmental psychology through its connections to both the Lifespan Perspective (P. B. Baltes, 1987) and the Selective Optimization with Compensation model (P. B. Baltes & M. M. Baltes, 1990), but the core of the constructed theory was grounded in the Uses and Gratifications Theory (Blumler & Katz, 1974), Self-Determination Theory (Deci & Ryan, 2004) and mediapsychological descriptions of the term ‘Enjoyment’ (e.g. Vorderer & Ritterfeld, 2009).The model was also applied to explain how the respondents evaluated the meanings of digital games in their lives. The explanation emphasized a difference between ‘contentual’ motives and ‘contextual’ motives. The first term was used to describe motives that were inherent to the connection between the player and the game (e.g. overcoming challenges, exercising game-related skills, immersing oneself in the game’s fiction and story, etc.). The latter was used to refer to motives that were the result of the player’s context (e.g. avoiding or replacing other activities, playing to please someone else, etc.). The analysis indicated that players who played as a result of contentual motives were more inclined to evaluate digital games as a positive, and often also important, contribution to their lives. In contrast, players who were driven by contextual motives evaluated digital games as a less significant, sometimes even problematic, part of their lives.The theoretical framework was also used to develop a classification of players between 50 and 70 years of age. Five solitairy player types were identified: 1) time wasters (i.e. playing a somewhat usefulgame to pass the time during short episodes of boredom), 2) compensators (i.e. playing as a result of an often reoccurring lack of preferred activities), 3) freedom fighters (i.e. playing in search of freedom, rest and relaxation), 4) value seekers (i.e. playing in function of self-cultivation and interests) and 5) ludophiles (i.e. playing complements a passion for playful activities).