Stories Of/By/For The Fields Of Play
Update: January 25, 2025
Hard to believe, but it’s been a year since we launched the study! l’m almost done with the reading and coding (I have about 25 to go). Once I get them all read, will start working on analysis, using the coding, along with the features in ATLAS.ti to explore the patterns, themes and threads throughout the interviews. Also, working on collaborations to create a podcast based on the interviews. Looking forward to being able to share more in the summer.
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Update: November 24, 2024
I’ve read through over half of the interviews to date (overall have 178 total). Working on highlighting and coding quotations. Great to feel the progress and revisit all the amazing interviews.
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Update: September 23, 2024
Reading through the interview transcripts has inspired me to update the name of the study by pluralizing “fields” for, Stories Of/By/For The Fields Of Play, which better represents the amazing diversity of participants. Working on analyzing the interviews, with just a handful of scheduled interviews left. With so many interviews, there is a wealth of information to explore and I’m taking the time to go through them carefully. Also, collaborating with colleagues from the Lee Kong Chian School of Business at Singapore Management University and t
So the study will most likely spill out into next year, but it’s exciting to see all the experiences shared.—
Update: August 06, 2024
I’ve completed all scheduled interviews (to date, I’ve interviewed 159 people). I have a handful more I’m working to get scheduled, and I’ve been so inspired by the interviews, I’m considering a podcast in order to keep having such fascinating conversations with amazing people. In terms of the study, we’re moving more into analysis, looking for threads, themes and patterns from the conversations.
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Update: July 13, 2024
This study has been a large part of the inspiration for founding Play Story Press™. It got me thinking about the field, and how we can best support it. Play Story Press is a culmination of 20 years of open-access publishing and collaborating with the community. Our founders started ETC Press in 2005 as an experimental open-access academic publishing imprint, and the success we had was a direct result of all the quality work that was written by our community. Inspired by this, Play Story Press is an open community publishing consortium of/by/for the field and our community. It is an evolution to become even more focused on the community and field.
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Update: June 11, 2024
Today is the inaugural International Day of Play and this study is moving into its more analytical phase, closing the questionnaire and winding down the interviews. This study has been inspirational, as I’ve conducted over 125 interviews, talking to people from all over the world. This community is made up of amazing people, and I’m excited to share more later as we get into analysis. Thank you to everyone who has participated in the questionnaire and interviews.
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Original Post: January 25, 2024
This exploratory qualitative study led by Drew Davidson explores the current state of the field of play, specifically in games and related areas (mixed reality, themed entertainment, tech, etc.). The concept of play is rather broad and diverse—from social studies to health and enjoyment, from education and learning to games and technology, and more. As such, this is less a focus on a discipline and more an exploration of the extensive ideas around play. Results will be published open access as we share stories of/by/for this vast fields of play in the global relationships amongst education institutions, industry companies, professional organizations, foundations, and government groups focused on the creative and entertainment technology industries.
With the support of Connected Learning Alliance, Games for Change, Global Game Jam, International Game Developer Association, Higher Education Video Game Alliance, and IndieCade, along with the Pittsburgh Remake Learning Initiative and the Pittsburgh Technology Council, we are reaching out through their communities for an interdisciplinary, cross-cultural study of international regions and cities that have shared expertise related with the field of play. These organizations will help form a global community committee to provide local focus on regions/cities/areas to help best ensure an inclusive process that offers perspectives from the diverse groups engaged within the field, working to be open and critical of established norms and supportive of points of view from under-represented and under-served groups.
The study will leverage questionnaires, in-depth interviews, and community participation to find patterns, commonalities, and differences across various regions amongst the education, industry, professional, foundation, and government groups involved in the field of play. We hope to explore how these creative ecosystems develop, evolve, survive, and thrive worldwide while discerning future opportunities and directions based on current and projected innovations and issues (e.g., generative AI, development platforms, work conditions, etc.). Also, we’ll be looking at how the various groups involved inter-relate within these ecosystems, how communities and connections form, and the professional pathways related to economic and workforce development. Across the field, we’ve seen various approaches, with schools focusing on art, technology, theory, and production (and more) and with companies specializing in multiplayer, virtual reality, mobile, RPGs, etc., as well as varying levels of organizational, foundational and governmental support for work in the field of play.
The goal will be to collaboratively produce a summative white paper report with a high-level synthesis and summative global sections contributed by the community committee. The process will be transparent and open, with all collected information available for further studies. We hope the final report will document the global state of play, highlighting themes and approaches, as well as serving as a reference for current practices, promises, and problems, and also as a guide with recommendations for how the field can level up and become more inclusive and innovative in more regions and cities around the world. As we work through the process, we’ll also explore and discuss the potential value and effort of regular follow-up studies to help continue sharing amongst the communities involved. Thank you for your interest and participation.
If you have any questions, you may contact the study team.
Photo credit: Antonio Gabola on Unsplash