Games

The 4 Types of Fun – Infographic

Yesterday, I stumbled upon this fascinating info graphic (click to enlarge):

Four Keys to Fun

It was created by game experience designer Nicole Lazzaro and shows the different kinds of positive emotions that gamers can experience while playing a well-crafted game. The underlying data was obtained from in-depth interviews and thorough observations of 60 gamers.

I am not a gamer myself (or rather, I stopped being one at age 14…) but I like the chart and the underlying concept for its striking similarity to some frameworks from Positive Psychology. It seems pretty easy to map the four types of fun to Seligman´s PERMA framework:

  • “Easy Fun” and Imagination can be found in Positive Emotions.
  • “Hard Fun” and Mastery can be found in Engagement and Achievement.
  • “People Fun” and Bonding can be found in Relationships.
  • “Serious Fun” and Value can be found in Meaning and also Achievement.

I´m always fascinated when different thinkers come to similar conclusions starting at totally different angles of a certain subject. Lazzaro has a presentation on Slideshare where she explores her framework in more depth. Have (maybe four types…) of fun with it!

Another 3 Positive Psychology-infused Books I´m really looking forward to

This is the magic of books: One can never have enough of them. After publishing two lists of recent and upcoming books that are infused by Positive Psychology over the last days (list one, list two) people kept pointing my attention towards more exciting stuff. So here´s another list of three books that you should definitely put on your reading list.

Scott Barry Kaufman & Carolyn Gregoire: Wired to Create: Unraveling the Mysteries of the Creative Mind. Scott Barry Kaufman is the scientific director of the Imagination Institute in the Positive Psychology Center and author of “Ungifted: Intelligence Redefined”. About the book:

“Based on psychologist Kaufman’s groundbreaking research and Gregoire’s popular article in the Huffington Post, Wired to Create offers a glimpse inside the “messy minds” of highly creative people. Revealing the latest findings in neuroscience and psychology, along with engaging examples of artists and innovators throughout history, the book shines a light on the practices and habits of mind that promote creative thinking.”

Jane McGonigal: SuperBetter: A Revolutionary Approach to Getting Stronger, Happier, Braver and More Resilient–Powered by the Science of Games. Jane McGonigal is a senior researcher at the Institute for the Future and the author of The New York Times bestseller “Reality Is Broken: Why Games Make Us Better and How They Can Change the World.” About the book:

“McGonigal reveals a decade’s worth of scientific research into the ways all games—including videogames, sports, and puzzles—change how we respond to stress, challenge, and pain. She explains how we can cultivate new powers of recovery and resilience in everyday life simply by adopting a more “gameful” mind-set.”

D. J. Moores, James O. Pawelski & others (Eds.): On Human Flourishing: A Poetry Anthology. James Pawelski is the Director of Education and Senior Scholar in the Positive Psychology Center at the University of Pennsylvania, where he serves as the founding director of the Master of Applied Positive Psychology (MAPP) program. About the book:

This collection of verse brings together poems of felicity, capturing what it means to be well in the fullest sense. Presented in 14 thematic sections, these works offer inspiring readings on wisdom, self-love, ecstasy, growth, righteousness, love and lust, inspiration, oneness with nature, hope, irreverence, awe, the delights of the senses, gratitude and compassion, relation to the sacred, justice, and unity.

Positive Psychology Books - 3

10 more Positive Psychology-related TED talks you don´t want to miss

I´ve already posted a list of 20+1 Positive Psychology TED talks a while ago. Here´s some more for you…