The Role of Uncertainty in Moment-to-Moment Player Motivation: A Grounded Theory
summary
Argues that moment-to-moment motivation in games centers on seven types of uncertainty derived from a constructivist grounded theory of 13 players, using hour-long interviews, diary entries, and video play recalls of five-minute casual sessions (Candy Crush, Super Hexagon, Monument Valley, plus strategy and sports examples). Taxonomy groups uncertainties into game/player/outcome sources, links them to motives like curiosity and perceived competence, notes saturation by ~11–13 participants and limits to short, casual games.
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chapters (7)
- 0:00Introduction and motivation
- 1:51Limitations of existing taxonomies
- 3:17Study design and data collection
- 5:26Sources of uncertainty in games
- 7:55Motivational role of uncertainty
- 9:24Conclusions and limitations
- 10:08Q&A on methodology and replication
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