- Project
- Completed
Board games, social skills and education
Ariela Holanda Doctor of Psychology
Ariela Holanda is a Doctor of Psychology and a teacher at the Federal Institute of Education, Science and Technology in Paraná, Brazil. Her research interests range from educational psychology to the study of board games and gaming behaviors.
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Project start date :
2020/11/02 -
Status :
Completed -
Research organization :
Federal Institute of Education, Science and Technology of Parana, Londrina State University -
Team :
Prof. Mauricio Iwama Takano (Federal Institute of Education, Science and Technology of Parana), Prof. Gustavo Iachel, Gabriel Ferreira Baptistone (Londrina State University), Dr Cassio Henrique dos Santos Amador (University of Paraná)
In 2020, Game in Lab selected Dr Ariela Holanda’s project to study the relationships between the use of board games in an educational context (specifically at several universities) and social skills (conversation, emotions, self-control) in students, young adults and adults.
Project overview
Educational environments are conducive to the development of social skills (management of emotions, thoughts and behaviors according to the socio-environmental context). These environments require that students have multiple skills for both academic success and interpersonal relationships. Similarly, board games are an interesting tool for teaching social skills because they can simulate real-world situations. Therefore, the objective of this project is to examine the potential of board games at university to develop students’ social skills.
Methodology
Two studies were conducted during this project, based on a Brazilian educational event offering monthly board game sessions at the university.
- A first study analyzes engagement in the event (number of participants, number of games borrowed, playing time, etc.).
- A second study uses questionnaires to analyze participants’ game preferences and social skills.
Outcomes
The event participants have below average social skills, and they prefer party games, which are quite predictable and encourage interactions. Therefore, it is possible that participants use them and benefit from them as social supports. Future studies should describe how games can contribute to teaching social skills.