Serious Gaming or: Taking Gaming Seriously

• Prof. Dr Daniel Keim/Dept of Computer and Information Science 
• Prof. Dr Isabell Otto/Dept of Literatures, Art, and Media Studies 
• Prof. Dr Ulf-Dietrich Reips; Dept of Psychology, Universität Konstanz

In the context of transdisciplinary standards and requirements for successful research work of the CRC, the subproject supports in a twofold structure a) the scientific and societal objectives of the Collaborative Research Centre through critical and creative thinking in terms of the experimentation of gaming practices, rules, environments, and behaviour; this includes providing of resources, advice, logistics and practical help in methodology and tools for empirical data collection and b) the organisational and technical requirements of the research data management envisaged thereby.

Part 1: Games and gaming have moved from being considered “just a kids’ pastime” to being used in a large variety of contexts. However, a fundamental understanding of gaming literacy, i.e. the ability to effectively navigate, interact with and achieve goals in a gaming environment as well as the ability to translate these practices into new forms of knowledge, is still lacking. In cooperation with the GameLab, we will develop a service for counselling and training in gaming literacy, which can be fed back into the sub-projects based on their needs, and can also be transferred, for example, into student projects or as a teaching module in the ADILT. The INF project will serve several empirically working subprojects of the CRC, to foster synergies and develop a culture of transdisciplinary exchange via central support. (WP1).

WP1: Literacy and experimental methods in Serious Gaming

1. Providing gaming literacy
2. Practising gaming literacy
3. Sustaining gaming literacy
4. Supporting experimental gaming methods

Part 2: This project also will take over CRC’s central service functions in the area of data and information infrastructure by setting up and administering a CRC-specific virtual research environment that guarantees access to, processing, maintenance and – where possible – reuse of hybrid research data. The areas of service include Virtual Reality (VR) and online data collection logistics and support, methods of knowledge and storage of experimental materials, protocols and best practice guidelines/manuals, recruitment and management of participants, coordination between data collection and data management the INF project develops and implements annotation and documentation standards for data collected, evaluated and/or developed in the context of the CRC. In close cooperation with KIM and the Open Science Group, it advises researchers on anonymization concepts for archiving and Open Science practices (WP2).

WP2: Data Collection and Management

1. Work platform
2. Research data platform
3. Interface module

• Junior Prof. Dr Laura König, Educational Research, Life Science, Universität Bayreuth 
• Prof. Dr Beate Ochsner, Dept of Literatures, Art, and Media Studies, Universität Konstanz
• Junior Prof. Dr Katharina Zahner-Ritter, Dept II Phonetics, Universität Trier

In the course of digitisation and the constant deepening and networking of knowledge in the science system, there is a growing need for new strategies and formats of knowledge transfer to allow both the scientific community and non-academic stakeholders, including lay audiences, to participate and engage in current research. This goes hand in hand with a change in the social order of knowledge, which regulates the creation, examination, dissemination and appropriation of knowledge in science: Thus, state-of-the-art science communication clearly goes beyond communication within science. Cross-border transfer or science journalism and communication are just as relevant as the knowledge generated, tested, disseminated and assessed together with non-academic stakeholders or lay audiences (keyword: public engagement). This is especially true for the CRC’s inter- and transdisciplinary research concept. Such a broad understanding of science communication picks up on current shifts in the boundaries between a scientification of society and the socialisation of science and implements them productively. These shifts both respond to and fuel the dynamics of gamification and workification that are central to the CRC. Building on the long-term experience of members of the CRC and the systematic work of the University of Konstanz in the area of science communication, knowledge transfer and public relations, the CRC will implement specific measures in the areas of

1. Event management (WP1)
2. Transfer (WP2)
3. Evaluation (WP3)

The implementations in WP1 and WP2 will be evaluated during the first funding period (WP3) in order to intensify and extend successful measures for a second funding period, modify and adjust existing measures accordingly, or cancel other, less promising ones.

Prof. Dr Beate Ochsner, Dept of Literatures, Art, and Media Studies, Universität Konstanz

The multitude of activities planned in the CRC requires intensive organization, coordination and administration. Sub-project Z provides these tasks to the other sub-projects as a central service. For this purpose, a CRC-Office will be established in the CRC, which consists of the spokesperson (head of the CRC-Office), the coordinator, a representative of each of the three research areas, as well as the ERC Officer and the Officer of the Equity & Diversity Board. The internal relationships within the CRC are regulated by the Bylaws for CRCs. Meetings are held biannually or can be called upon request.