Abstract
ABSTRACT People with mental illness struggle to find connection and community due to a combination of stigma, social isolation, and adverse social experiences. Digital games, as an immersive and interactive media, can convey aspects of mental health experiences in thoughtful ways. I considered how players connect with characters in digital games about mental health. Combining social network theories and science and technology studies, this qualitative grounded theory study of 48 people who play video games and experience mental illness found that players perceive and form bonds with characters as experientially similar to themselves. Players engaged with different commercially-available games about mental health and felt less alone in their own experiences, identified new coping strategies, and envisioned alternate self-narratives. I put forward a concept, experientially simulated others, to define the specific ways that digital games’ interactivity and immersivity enhance the impacts of connecting with shared mental health experiences.
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
