Abstract
This paper describes the process of developing and collecting data for analysis via a Qualtrics survey on “Tend & Befriend Theory” and the Acute Stress Response, i.e. “Fight or Flight Response”. We discuss the constraints and implications of current thinking around “Tend & Befriend”, the descriptive results of our initial study, present a methodology for categorising Tend & Befriend games, frame our results in the context of gaming experience, and outline our next research steps in addition to areas of future interest. Our study suggests that Tend & Befriend can be considered as a concrete phenomenon in games, supported by data. Our findings show some games can be considered as “archetypal” titles, making them useful references for research and discourse.
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O’Shea, Z., Bartle, R., Pan, X., Freeman, J. (2022). Apples and Oranges: A Study of “Tend & Befriend” as a Phenomenon in Digital Games. In: Fang, X. (eds) HCI in Games. HCII 2022. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 13334. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-05637-6_17
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