Examining Designed Experiences: A Walkthrough for Understanding Video Games as Performance Assessments

Abstract

Although there is an extensive body of video game research, very few resources exist that outline the potential for games to provide process-oriented data related to human behavior and learning. The current chapter offers guidance for researchers to extract dynamic, emergent, and complex data from video game contexts, and thus unlock the potential for games to function as performance assessments. This chapter describes how to leverage behavioral observation as a means to examine player interactions that are associated with knowledge acquisition, formative (within-game) activities, and summative (end-game) outcomes. Specifically, through employing a moral-choice video game as an example, we walk though deconstructing the game, defining game elements, and the construction of a behavioral observation protocol. Although some games aren't well-suited for this approach, we provide a framework for how in-game player interactions can be captured, coded, and analyzed. Each step is used to illustrate how games can function as performance assessments.