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Glued to Games: How Video Games Draw Us In and Hold Us Spellbound
Abstract
This book offers a practical yet powerful way to understand the psychological appeal and strong motivation to play video games. With video game sales in the billions and anxious concerns about their long-term effects growing louder, Glued to Games: How Video Games Draw Us In and Hold Us Spellbound brings something new to the discussion. It is the first truly balanced research-based analysis on the games and gamers, addressing both the positive and negative aspects of habitual playing by drawing on significant recent studies and established motivational theory. Filled with examples from popular games and the real experiences of gamers themselves, Glued to Games gets to the heart of gaming's powerful psychological and emotional allure—the benefits as well as the dangers. It gives everyone from researchers to parents to gamers themselves a clearer understanding the psychology of gaming, while offering prescriptions for healthier, more enjoyable games and gaming experiences.
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In the citing paper
“Indeed, as studies in video games (Rigby and Ryan, 2011) and media consumption (Hefner and Vorderer, 2017) confirm, too much engagement can crowd-out healthy activities to the detriment of overall wellbeing.”
From Designing for Motivation, Engagement and Wellbeing in Digital Experience (2018) · cites this paper as Rigby and Ryan, 2011
In the citing paper
“Rigby and Ryan (2011) detail how the intuitive design of controls, and the density and clarity of feedback all impact engagement via increased competence.”
From Designing for Motivation, Engagement and Wellbeing in Digital Experience (2018) · cites this paper as Rigby and Ryan (2011)
In the citing paper
“Studies by Rigby and Ryan (2011) provide some examples of interface-based need satisfaction that show how variations in video game feature design impact a user's sense of autonomy and competence during play which in turn determine to what extent users engage with and enjoy a technology.”
From Designing for Motivation, Engagement and Wellbeing in Digital Experience (2018) · cites this paper as Rigby and Ryan (2011)
In the citing paper
“This is precisely how SDT researchers have worked with game designers to increase user engagement in digital games (see Rigby and Ryan, 2011; Przybylski et al., 2014).”
From Designing for Motivation, Engagement and Wellbeing in Digital Experience (2018) · cites this paper as Rigby and Ryan, 2011
In the citing paper
“The PENS has been used to assess the experience of need satisfaction and user experience in video game contexts and has been refined in its ongoing use (see Rigby and Ryan, 2011).”
From Designing for Motivation, Engagement and Wellbeing in Digital Experience (2018) · cites this paper as Rigby and Ryan, 2011
In the citing paper
“In this sense, constructive competition has the potential to foster feelings of relatedness, thereby enhancing intrinsic motivation (Rigby and Ryan 2011).”
From The gamification of learning: a meta-analysis (2020) · cites this paper as Rigby and Ryan 2011
In the citing paper
“In the broader context of games, collaboration has the potential to affect the needs for both relatedness and competence (Rigby and Ryan 2011).”
From The gamification of learning: a meta-analysis (2020) · cites this paper as Rigby and Ryan 2011
In the citing paper
“Collaboration-as well as competition augmented by aspects of collaboration (i.e., constructive competition)-can have additional beneficial effects on intrinsic motivation when compared with solitary engagement in an activity; as in cases of collaboration and competition augmented by aspects of collaboration, the need for relatedness is fostered additionally.”
From The gamification of learning: a meta-analysis (2020) · cites this paper as Rigby and Ryan 2011
In the citing paper
“Mere competition, however, can thwart feelings of relatedness when the goal is to defeat each other rather than to improve skills together (see Rigby and Ryan 2011).”
From The gamification of learning: a meta-analysis (2020) · cites this paper as Rigby and Ryan 2011
In the citing paper
“The mechanisms that are supposed to be at work according to self-determination theory (Rigby and Ryan 2011) were not fully supported in this analysis.”
From The gamification of learning: a meta-analysis (2020) · cites this paper as Rigby and Ryan 2011
In the citing paper
“As Rigby and Ryan (2011) pointed out, satisfying the need for relatedness, especially in competitive situations, largely depends on how competition is experienced.”
From The gamification of learning: a meta-analysis (2020) · cites this paper as Rigby and Ryan 2011
In the citing paper
“However, these needs accomplish the same effect when playing video games (Rigby & Ryan, 2011) and therefore, it might be explained that autonomously perceived motivation is associated with study satisfaction in the dimension of coping in the context of learning with badges and progress bars.”
From Online learning readiness and attitudes towards gaming in gamified online learning – a mixed methods case study (2018) · cites this paper as Rigby & Ryan, 2011
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Metadata
- Authors
- Rigby, S., & Ryan, R. M.
- ORCID
- Ryan, Richard M.
- Publisher
- ABC-CLIO, LLC
- Published
- 2011
- OpenAlex
- W4389554327
- Cited by
- 362
- References
- 0
- Citations by year
- 2026: 37 · 2025: 30 · 2024: 32 · 2023: 40 · 2022: 38 · 2021: 40 · 2020: 19 · 2019: 19 · 2018: 28 · 2017: 10 · 2016: 26 · 2015: 15 · 2014: 15 · 2013: 6 · 2012: 6
- FWCI
- 11.18
- Type
- book
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Digital Games and Media
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Impact of Technology on Adolescents
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Developmental and Educational Psychology › Educational Games and Gamification
- Keywords
- video games, play motivation, player experience, motivation theories, game design
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