Small, personal videogames about mental health

Fiadotau, Mikhail

doi:10.1145/3555858.3555917

Cited by 2 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 7 publications

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“…Although the amount of video games available is still limited, the existing corpus of video games about lived experiences of neurodiversity is growing. These games range from the selfexpressions of neurodivergent designers (Fiadotau, 2022) to applied games developed and further analyzed in an academic context (Whitby & Kowert, 2022). They are often designed as a psychoeducational interventions, to educate friends, relatives, and a wider interested public on daily life with a specific expression of neurodiversity.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Experiences of Neurodivergent People When Playing an Educational Video Game About Their Own Diagnosis

Meinen

2023

Scandinavian Journal of Disability Research

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This paper discusses how participants with diagnoses of autism, psychosis, or OCD (obsessive-compulsive disorder) experienced playing an educational video game about that same diagnosis. Rather than having participants make a specific assessment of the video game they played, the gameplay was used as a creative task to trigger reflection on their experiences with neurodivergent perceptions and knowledge. Central was the phenomenological question of what it means for someone to play a video game intended to communicate to outsiders a vision of neurodiversity that also represents (parts of) their lived experience. The study is based on in-depth semi-structured interviews with 10 adult participants. Using interpretative phenomenological analysis, three main themes were formulated: (1) working with and around the diagnostic label, (2) the paradox of understanding, and (3) the serious nature of play. Then, several theoretical implications concerning the performative effects of a psychiatric diagnosis, cross-neurotype communication, and inclusive definitions of play are formulated. The paper concludes that playing video games during the interviews formed a good conversation starter for sharing neurodiversity-related experiences, which also demonstrates their meaningful complementarity to traditional interview-based qualitative research.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Experiences of Neurodivergent People When Playing an Educational Video Game About Their Own Diagnosis

Meinen

2023

Scandinavian Journal of Disability Research

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"I Found it Cathartic": Exploring Empathy and Mental Health Awareness in Psychological Horror Video Games

Tomé,

Pires,

Jiskrová

et al. 2024

Proc. ACM Hum.-Comput. Interact.

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Horror video games have often been criticized for their negative and unrealistic depiction of mental health, primarily through their portrayal of characters with mental illnesses. Such representations can perpetuate stigma and misconceptions about mental health issues. However, there has recently been a growing interest in accurate portrayals of these characters and how playing these video games could also elicit empathy and mental health awareness. In our study, we explored how a psychological horror game such as Silent Hill 2 could foster empathy and mental health awareness through individual interviews with 11 participants. Our findings revealed that participants gained a deeper understanding of mental health issues and empathy towards characters struggling with mental illnesses by interacting and controlling them. Participants had a greater attachment to the characters' inner struggles and their gameplay was experienced as cathartic. Moreover, our findings highlighted the potential of psychological horror to serve as a platform for character-driven narratives, showcasing how engagement with such games elicited empathy among participants. We contribute to an exploratory understanding that can assist game designers and writers in crafting narratives within the Psychological Horror genre that foster empathy and mental health awareness.

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Small, personal videogames about mental health

Cited by 2 publications

References 7 publications

Experiences of Neurodivergent People When Playing an Educational Video Game About Their Own Diagnosis

Experiences of Neurodivergent People When Playing an Educational Video Game About Their Own Diagnosis

"I Found it Cathartic": Exploring Empathy and Mental Health Awareness in Psychological Horror Video Games

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