Episode 34: I Never Metacognition I Didn’t Like

Cognitive Gamer
Cognitive Gamer
Episode 34: I Never Metacognition I Didn’t Like
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As humans, we can think about our own thinking. This is referred to as metacognition, and can provide great insight into game playing and life in general.

Game References

Dominion, Dungeons and Dragons, League of Legends, Magic, poker, Rear Window

Research References

Kreutzer, M. A., Leonard, C., Flavell, J. H., & Hagen, J. W. (1975). An interview study of children’s knowledge about memory. Monographs of the society for research in child development, 1-60.

Rodney & Quinns: 10 Years in Board Games | AwSHUX 2021: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EehobiA6dQg

The Secret Cabal of Gaming: #254: Final Girl And A Short Topic Extravaganza: https://thesecretcabal.com/episodes/episode-254-final-girl

Episode 33: Get Your Head in the Game

Cognitive Gamer
Cognitive Gamer
Episode 33: Get Your Head in the Game
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This episode considers how best to learn and teach games. Are there particular techniques that enables people to learn games more quickly and efficiently, and that also results in a longer memory for those rules?

Game References

Fog of Love, Magic Maze, Mechs and Minions, Wingspan

Research References

Bloom, B. S. (1984). The 2 sigma problem: The search for methods of group instruction as effective as one-to-one tutoring. Educational researcher13(6), 4-16.

Haverty, L., & Blessing, S. (2007). What did that $2.5 million dollar ad buy us? Cognitive science goes to the super bowl. In D. S. McNamara & J. G. Trafton (Eds.), Proceedings of the Twenty–ninth Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society (pp. 347-352), Nashville, TN. Austin, TX: Cognitive Science Society.

Khazan, O. (2018). The myth of learning styles: A popular theory that come people learn better visually or aurally keeps getting debunked. The Atlantic, April11.

https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2018/04/the-myth-of-learning-styles/557687/

Warrneder, J. (2021).  These two blog posts on boardgame geek:

https://boardgamegeek.com/blogpost/116980/thinking-about-design-thinking

https://boardgamegeek.com/blogpost/118075/science-learning-and-its-application-teaching-game

Episode 32: From the Bottom to the Top and Back Again

Cognitive Gamer
Cognitive Gamer
Episode 32: From the Bottom to the Top and Back Again
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When processing information, humans use both the information coming through our senses and previously stored knowledge. This is referred to as bottom-up versus top-down processing. This podcast explores how this occurs when we play games.

Game References

Paranormal Detective

Research References

Cattell, J. M. (1886). The time it takes to see and name objects. Mind, 41, 63–65.

McCelland, J. & Rumelhart, D. (1981). An interactive activation model of context effects in letter perception: part 1. An account of basic findings. Psychological Review 88(5), 375–407.

Dogs that look like fried chicken

Blind Spot Demo

Episode 31: I Think I Know What You Know

Cognitive Gamer
Cognitive Gamer
Episode 31: I Think I Know What You Know
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Show Notes

When playing games, we find it useful to consider what other players know, and how that affects game play. Psychologists study theory of mind, our concept of what other people know. Dr. Jennifer Blessing and I discuss how this relates to playing games.

Game References

Apples to Apples, Cards Against Humanity, Chess, Codenames, Decrypto, Kemet, Scythe, Sheriff of Nottingham, Taboo

Research References

Baron-Cohen, S., Leslie, A. M., & Frith, U. (1985). Does the autistic child have a “theory of mind”. Cognition21(1), 37-46.

Premack, D., & Woodruff, G. (1978). Does the chimpanzee have a theory of mind?. Behavioral and brain sciences1(4), 515-526.

Episode 30: The Invisible Boardgame

Cognitive Gamer
Cognitive Gamer
Episode 30: The Invisible Boardgame
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I ruminate on playing games online and how that relates to both game and interface design, as well as how humans experience emotion. This has ties to me planning to teach my Cognition of Game Playing as an online class this coming summer term.

Game References

boardgamearena.com

https://boardgamegeek.com/wiki/page/Distance_Gaming_Guide

Research References

Lang, P. J. (1994). The varieties of emotional experience: a meditation on James-Lange theory. Psychological review101(2), 211.

Norman, D. A. (1999). The invisible computer: why good products can fail, the personal computer is so complex, and information appliances are the solution. MIT press.

Episode 29: This is Like That: The Importance of Analogies

Cognitive Gamer
Cognitive Gamer
Episode 29: This is Like That: The Importance of Analogies
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In talking about a game, we almost always make references to past games in order to describe or teach the new game. What does cognitive psychology have to say about analogy use, in terms of how prevalent and useful it really is?

Game References

Aeon’s End, Clank, Dominion, Paperback, Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order

Research References

Dunbar, K., & Blanchette, I. (2001). The in vivo/in vitro approach to cognition: The case of analogy. Trends in cognitive sciences, 5(8), 334-339.

Gick, M. L., & Holyoak, K. J. (1980). Analogical problem solving. Cognitive psychology, 12(3), 306-355.

Gick, M. L., & Holyoak, K. J. (1983). Schema induction and analogical transfer. Cognitive psychology, 15(1), 1-38.

Reed, S. K., & Bolstad, C. A. (1991). Use of examples and procedures in problem solving. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition17(4), 753.

Ross, B. H. (1984). Remindings and their effects in learning a cognitive skill. Cognitive psychology16(3), 371-416.

Episode 28: From Novice to Expert in One Easy Step

Cognitive Gamer
Cognitive Gamer
Episode 28: From Novice to Expert in One Easy Step
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What happens, cognitively speaking, as we move from novice to expert in a game? The episode examines changes in memory and strategy as people gain experience not only games, but in other mental and physical activities as well.

Game References

Chess, Incan Gold

Research References

Bloom, B. S., & Sosniak, L. A. (1985). Developing talent in young people. Ballantine Books.

Chase, W. G., & Simon, H. A. (1973). Perception in chess. Cognitive Psychology, 4, 55-81.

Chi, M. T., Feltovich, P. J., & Glaser, R. (1981). Categorization and representation of physics problems by experts and novices. Cognitive science5(2), 121-152.

Ericcson, K. A., Chase, W. G., & Faloon, S. (1980). Acquisition of a memory skill. Science208(4448), 1181-1182.

Gladwell, M. (2008). Outliers: The Story of Success. New York: Little, Brown and Company.

Episode 27: Mental Models

Cognitive Gamer
Cognitive Gamer
Episode 27: Mental Models
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If you are an experienced gamer, you have seen that you can pick up a new game much more quickly than someone who doesn’t have as much gaming experience. Why is that? We discuss both the benefits and detriments of mental models in this podcast.

Game References

Boon, Briscola Chiamata, Cyberpunk 2077, Filler, Sheepshead

Research References

Gentner, D., & Stevens, A. L. (Eds.). (2014). Mental models. Psychology Press.

Johnson-Laird, P. N. (1983). Mental models: Towards a cognitive science of language, inference, and consciousness (No. 6). Harvard University Press.

Kaiser, M. K., McCloskey, M., & Proffitt, D. R. (1986). Development of intuitive theories of motion: Curvilinear motion in the absence of external forces. Developmental Psychology, 22(1), 67-71.

Meyer, D., Leventhal, H., & Gutmann, M. (1985). Common-sense models of illness: the example of hypertension. Health psychology4(2), 115-135.

Nussbaum, J. (1979). Children’s conceptions of the earth as a cosmic body: A cross age study. Science education63(1), 83-93.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ace-Ten_games

Episode 26: To Switch or Not to Switch (but not that type of Switch)

Cognitive Gamer
Cognitive Gamer
Episode 26: To Switch or Not to Switch (but not that type of Switch)
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Multi-tasking happens a lot. We’re in a meeting, we email. We watch TV, we text. And to the chagrin of many, we play a game with our friends, we scroll through social media. What does cognitive psychology have to say about doing multiple things at once?

Game References

Flux, Rise of Fenris, Scythe, Stay Cool, What Remains of Edith Finch

Research References

https://www.psytoolkit.org/experiment-library/experiment_wcst.html

Caird, J. K., Johnston, K. A., Willness, C. R., Asbridge, M., & Steel, P. (2014). A meta-analysis of the effects of texting on driving. Accident Analysis & Prevention71, 311-318.

Pashler, H. (1994). Dual-task interference in simple tasks: data and theory. Psychological bulletin116(2), 220.

Grant, D. A., & Berg, E. (1948). A behavioral analysis of degree of reinforcement and ease of shifting to new responses in a Weigl-type card-sorting problem. Journal of experimental psychology38(4), 404.

Kanfer, R., Ackerman, P. L., Murtha, T. C., Dugdale, B., & Nelson, L. (1994). Goal setting, conditions of practice, and task performance: A resource allocation perspective. Journal of Applied Psychology79(6), 826.

Episode 25: Now That’s Deep!

Cognitive Gamer
Cognitive Gamer
Episode 25: Now That's Deep!
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We examine the concept of levels of processing in this episode, that if you process an experience more deeply, you will remember it better. This comes into play in many aspects of gaming, for both players and designers.

Game References

Fog of Love, What Remains of Edith Finch, When I Dream

Research References

Craik, F. I., & Lockhart, R. S. (1972). Levels of processing: A framework for memory research. Journal of verbal learning and verbal behavior11(6), 671-684.