Raab Marius Hans, Döbler Niklas Alexander, Carbon Claus-Christian
Department of General Psychology and Methodology, University of Bamberg, Bamberg, Germany.
Bamberg Graduate School of Affective and Cognitive Sciences (BaGrACS), Bamberg, Germany.
Front Psychol. 2021 Jun 29;12:607309. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.607309. eCollection 2021.
Many aspects of handling the COVID-19 pandemic bear a resemblance to patterns found in games. We observe point displays and leader boards, the visible assumption of roles, classic archetypes, the collection of resources, and spatial awareness. We argue that these patterns manifest spontaneously as a form of analogical reasoning, because people lack cultural and individual norms as well as cognitive scripts for a pandemic. Trying to find systematic similarities between a novel and a familiar situation is an essential cognitive strategy and a cultural tool, resulting in a spontaneous ludification of this crisis. Unfortunately, most institutions, the media and policymakers focus on attributes that are easy to communicate, not on relations and causal chains. This results in shallow analogies, where the mechanisms and dynamics of COVID-19 are not addressed. This can cause a sense of helplessness, where many people remain passive viewers. A pandemic, however, calls for cooperative action of people who understand the relations between different factors and stakeholders in order to mitigate several negative effects linked to such a crisis. We propose a psychologically founded "Strategic gamification" (here in the context of a pandemic), a form of sense-making that builds on spontaneously emerging ludic elements. By extending upon those elements through the lens of game design, we can shape the mechanics, dynamics and esthetics of a serious context in a more meaningful way. The resulting analogies have better predictive power and are suited to utilize positive aspects of gamification like engagement, elaboration and collaboration.
应对新冠疫情的诸多方面与游戏中的模式有相似之处。我们观察到点数显示和排行榜、角色的显性设定、经典原型、资源收集以及空间意识。我们认为，这些模式作为一种类比推理形式自发呈现，因为人们缺乏应对大流行的文化和个人规范以及认知脚本。试图在新颖情境与熟悉情境之间找到系统的相似之处是一种基本的认知策略和文化工具，导致这场危机自然而然地游戏化。不幸的是，大多数机构、媒体和政策制定者关注的是易于传达的属性，而非关系和因果链。这导致了肤浅的类比，其中新冠疫情的机制和动态未得到探讨。这可能会导致一种无助感，许多人因此沦为被动的旁观者。然而，一场大流行需要人们采取合作行动，这些人要理解不同因素和利益相关者之间的关系，以减轻与这种危机相关的若干负面影响。我们提出一种基于心理学的“战略游戏化”（在此指大流行背景下），这是一种基于自发出现的游戏元素的意义构建形式。通过从游戏设计的角度扩展这些元素，我们可以以更有意义的方式塑造严肃情境的机制、动态和美学。由此产生的类比具有更好的预测能力，适合利用游戏化的积极方面，如参与度、精细化和协作。
