research-article

Playing a Flawless Character? Exploring Differences Between Experts and Novices in Tabletop Role-Playing Games and Potential Benefits for Well-Being

Authors:

Susanne Poeller,

Martin Dechant,

Regan L. MandrykAuthors Info & Claims

FDG '23: Proceedings of the 18th International Conference on the Foundations of Digital Games

Article No.: 58, Pages 1 - 7

https://doi.org/10.1145/3582437.3587180

Published: 12 April 2023 Publication History

Abstract

Tabletop role-playing games are experiencing a peak in popularity and prior work shows that role-playing can be beneficial for mental health. While little research effort has been invested into this area, most studies point towards positive outcomes of playing tabletop role-playing games. This work explores the potential for the acceptance of flaws through role-playing by comparing how novice and expert players approach character creation. The results of this exploratory study show that experienced role-players are more likely to report that they want to play a character with weaknesses and less likely to be interested in playing a flawless character. Additional findings and implications are discussed in the paper.

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Cited By

Yuliawati LWardhani PNg J(2024)A Scoping Review of Tabletop Role-Playing Game (TTRPG) as Psychological Intervention: Potential Benefits and Future DirectionsPsychology Research and Behavior Management10.2147/PRBM.S466664Volume 17(2885-2903)Online publication date: Aug-2024
https://doi.org/10.2147/PRBM.S466664
Sezen DAkcali ASezen TPerks SStewart P(2024)Exploring Women's Role in Creative Industries Through Collaborative Action Research Using Tabletop Role-Playing GamesTechnology, Innovation, Entrepreneurship and Education10.1007/978-3-031-59383-3_3(39-53)Online publication date: 29-Jun-2024
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-59383-3_3

Index Terms

Playing a Flawless Character? Exploring Differences Between Experts and Novices in Tabletop Role-Playing Games and Potential Benefits for Well-Being
1. Applied computing
  1. Computers in other domains
    1. Personal computers and PC applications
      1. Computer games
  2. Life and medical sciences
    1. Consumer health
2. Human-centered computing
  1. Human computer interaction (HCI)
    1. Empirical studies in HCI

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cover image ACM Other conferences

FDG '23: Proceedings of the 18th International Conference on the Foundations of Digital Games

April 2023

621 pages

ISBN:9781450398558

DOI:10.1145/3582437

Editors:
Phil Lopes
Lusófona University
,
Filipe Luz
Lusófona University
,
Antonios Liapis
University of Malta
,
Henrik Engström
University of Skövde

Copyright © 2023 ACM.

Permission to make digital or hard copies of all or part of this work for personal or classroom use is granted without fee provided that copies are not made or distributed for profit or commercial advantage and that copies bear this notice and the full citation on the first page. Copyrights for components of this work owned by others than the author(s) must be honored. Abstracting with credit is permitted. To copy otherwise, or republish, to post on servers or to redistribute to lists, requires prior specific permission and/or a fee. Request permissions from [email protected].

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Published: 12 April 2023

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FDG 2023

FDG 2023: Foundations of Digital Games 2023

April 12 - 14, 2023

Lisbon, Portugal

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Cited By

Yuliawati LWardhani PNg J(2024)A Scoping Review of Tabletop Role-Playing Game (TTRPG) as Psychological Intervention: Potential Benefits and Future DirectionsPsychology Research and Behavior Management10.2147/PRBM.S466664Volume 17(2885-2903)Online publication date: Aug-2024
https://doi.org/10.2147/PRBM.S466664
Sezen DAkcali ASezen TPerks SStewart P(2024)Exploring Women's Role in Creative Industries Through Collaborative Action Research Using Tabletop Role-Playing GamesTechnology, Innovation, Entrepreneurship and Education10.1007/978-3-031-59383-3_3(39-53)Online publication date: 29-Jun-2024
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-59383-3_3

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