Differences In Games Research Articles

Persistent individual differences in tactic use in a producer–scrounger game are group dependent

Consistent individual differences in behaviour have now been documented in a broad range of organisms over a variety of contexts. However, individual differences in social contexts have received less attention. We explored the consistency and temporal persistence of individual differences in tactic use in a producer–scrounger foraging game using two sets of flocks of wild-caught nutmeg mannikins, Lonchura punctulata. With both sets of birds, we observed significant individual differences in tactic use that persisted under different food distributions and when flock members were reunited at a 6-month interval with the same flockmates but not when flock members were different. In another experiment, in which birds with high-scrounging profiles were made to forage in the same flock, the corporate frequency of scrounging was no higher, and the intake rate no lower than in flocks made up of intermediate- or low-frequency scroungers. Taken together our experiments suggest that persistent individual differences can arise from dynamics that are peculiar to the group in which they occur, underlining the importance of companions’ identity in determining tactic use in this game. Behavioural plasticity can erase idiosyncratic individual differences in games with frequency-dependent payoffs when group composition changes.

Developing pupils’ performance in team invasion games

Background: To develop pupils’ team invasion games (TIG) performance within physical education (PE), practitioners have traditionally adopted teacher-centred, skill-focused approaches. Teaching Games for Understanding and the Tactical approach are alternative approaches to TIG teaching that aim to develop overall game performance, including decision-making performance. Purpose: The main purpose of this study was to conduct an ecologically valid investigation into the effects a tactical teaching approach had on game knowledge, game playing performance and pupil perception of decision-making ability compared to authentic teaching in a Scottish secondary school. Participants and setting: Fifty-two pupils (24 female; 28 male; age = 12.5 ± 0.3 years) participated in this study. The pupils were made up of two secondary 1 (S1) classes from a Scottish urban state secondary school. Both classes were heterogeneous in terms of gender and ability and the pupils from each class had similar pre-secondary school PE experiences. Two teachers, Lisa and Anthony, took part in this study. Both Lisa (age = 23 years) and Anthony (age = 27 years) had taught in the school for one year. Intervention: The overall aim for both teachers was to develop the pupils’ performance in a game of 4v4 basketball over a five-week block. The teaching strategies Lisa used to reach this aim were based on the Tactical approach to teaching games. Using pupil-centred teaching strategies such as problem-solving, discussing and reflecting, Lisa's aims were to develop the pupils’ tactical understanding and game performance in relation to creating space on and off-the-ball to keep possession and progress towards target, re-gaining possession and counter attack, and denying space in the key area. Anthony followed the PE department's guidelines for teaching basketball to improve the pupils’ performance in 4v4 basketball. This involved the application of direct teaching strategies to teach the chest pass, the bounce pass, dribbling, the set shot, the jump shot and the lay-up. Data collection: Data from focus group interviews was gathered in order to elicit pupils’ knowledge and experiences of learning to play TIG. The pupils were recorded on video before and after the intervention to determine any differences in game playing performance between groups. Finally, a questionnaire was administered in order to establish the pupils’ perception of their own decision-making abilities both on and off-the-ball. Data analysis: The focus group interview data were analysed by two experienced researchers who identified key experiences (or bodies of knowledge) about basketball that the pupils in each group discussed. In order to analyse the participants’ game performance in offence both on and off-the-ball, their tactical decisions were coded as ‘good’ or ‘poor’, and their on-the-ball skill execution was coded as either ‘successful’ or ‘unsuccessful’. The questionnaire data were analysed using a mixed design two-way repeated measures ANOVA to test for differences between the two groups in their perception of decision-making ability. Findings: During the focus group interviews, the group that took part in the traditional, more skill-focused, lessons discussed the technical components of basketball skills, and the pupils from the game-based lessons discussed the different principles of play that they applied during practices and games. The 4v4 game performance data demonstrated that the game-based group made significantly more good decisions on and off-the-ball compared to the skill-focused group. There were no significant differences between groups post intervention in terms of on-the-ball skill execution. The pupils in the game-based group believed that their decision-making abilities, both on and off the ball, had improved. In contrast, the class that took part in the skill-focused lessons believed that their decision-making abilities had deteriorated over the five-week period. Conclusion: The findings from this research provide valuable information in relation to the learning outcomes produced by different teaching approaches during an investigation high in ecological validity. In order to further our understanding teaching TIG, future research should examine the teaching and learning processes involved when adopting such approaches.

Medical student attitudes toward video games and related new media technologies in medical education

BackgroundStudies in K-12 and college students show that their learning preferences have been strongly shaped by new media technologies like video games, virtual reality environments, the Internet, and social networks. However, there is no known research on medical students' game experiences or attitudes towards new media technologies in medical education. This investigation seeks to elucidate medical student experiences and attitudes, to see whether they warrant the development of new media teaching methods in medicine.MethodsMedical students from two American universities participated. An anonymous, 30-item, cross-sectional survey addressed demographics, game play experience and attitudes on using new media technologies in medical education. Statistical analysis identified: 1) demographic characteristics; 2) differences between the two universities; 3) how video game play differs across gender, age, degree program and familiarity with computers; and 4) characteristics of students who play most frequently.Results217 medical students participated. About half were female (53%). Respondents liked the idea of using technology to enhance healthcare education (98%), felt that education should make better use of new media technologies (96%), and believed that video games can have educational value (80%). A majority (77%) would use a multiplayer online healthcare simulation on their own time, provided that it helped them to accomplish an important goal. Men and women agreed that they were most inclined to use multiplayer simulations if they were fun (97%), and if they helped to develop skill in patient interactions (90%). However, there was significant gender dissonance over types of favorite games, the educational value of video games, and the desire to participate in games that realistically replicated the experience of clinical practice.ConclusionsOverall, medical student respondents, including many who do not play video games, held highly favorable views about the use of video games and related new media technology in medical education. Significant gender differences in game play experience and attitudes may represent male video game design bias that stresses male cognitive aptitudes; medical educators hoping to create serious games that will appeal to both men and women must avoid this.

Explanations for the United States of America's dominance in basketball at the Beijing Olympic Games (2008)

Anecdotally, the fast pace at which the USA men's basketball team played at the 2008 Olympics was the main reason for their dominance, although there is no way of quantifying what a fast pace is or how it contributed to point differentials. The aim of this study was to examine the game-related statistics that discriminate between fast- and slow-paced games, as well as to identify key performance factors relating to point differentials. We analysed game-related statistics for each quarter of the eight games played by the USA using a k-means cluster analysis to classify game pace using ball possessions per game quarter. We then tested for differences in game statistics between slow- and fast-paced game quarters using analysis of variance and discriminant analysis. How differences in game-related statistics affected point differentials was examined using linear regression. The largest structure coefficient between game paces for the USA was for recovered balls (0.33, P < 0.001). The biggest contributors to the point differences in games were recovered balls (16.9, P < 0.001) and field goals (22.2, P < 0.001). We conclude that when the USA play a fast-paced game, they are able to recover more balls from opponents that they then turn into effective field-goal shooting.

Load Characteristics of Mini Games in Soccer from the Viewpoint of Improvement in Physical Fitness: The Effect of Differences in Court Area and the Number of Players

This study focused on mini games in soccer, a game generally used as teaching material in PE classes, and examined the effect of differences in the size of the court and the number of the players on load characteristics from the viewpoint of improvement in physical fitness. Twenty male junior high school students participated in the present study. They played four types of games with changing the size of the court and the number of the players: Game A (court size: 30m × 20m, 5 players per team, court area per player: 120m2); Game B (court size: 45m × 30m, 5 players per team, court area per player: 270m2); Game C (court size: 45m × 30m, 10 players per team, court area per player: 135m2); Game D (court size: 60m × 40m, 10 players per team, court area per player: 240m2). The number of ball contacts, the ratio of appearance time of each movement speed and the total movement distance during the game were measured. Questionnaires about the game were conducted after all games. Skill test (pass and dribble tests) and Physical fitness test (50m sprint and 20m shuttle run) were also performed. In analysis of data, eight students among twenty were used. The main results were as follows: 1) The number of ball contacts was greater in small-group games A and B than in large-group games C and D. Among them, there were significant differences in Game A and both Games C and D. 2) The ratio of the appearance time of each movement speed showed no significant difference among the four games at any speed. However, moderate speeds (3-4m / sec) tended to be greater in Game B, in which the number of the players was smaller and the court area was larger (p =0.08), and higher speeds (4-5m and 5-6m / sec) tended to be greater in Games B and D, in which the court area per player was larger. 3) Questionnaire scores were greater in the psychology component (4.0 to 5.0 points) and techniques component (coordination) (4.0 to 4.8 points) than in the physical fitness component (2.9 to 4.1 points), however, no significant difference was revealed among the four games in any questions on any aspect. In the psychology component question which asked about interest, small-group games A and B tended to reveal greater interest than large-group games C and D (p =0.08). 4) In Games A and C, in which the court area per player was smaller, there was a significantly positive correlation between the number of ball contacts and the results of the pass test, while there was a significantly negative correlation between the number of ball contacts and the results of the dribble test. 5) In Games C and D, in which the number of the players was larger, there was a significantly positive correlation between the total movement distance and the results of 20m shuttle run in the physical fitness test. The results suggest that small-group games might improve technique (coordination) in addition to evoking students' volition for learning, and that games in which the court area per player is larger might be available for improvement in their anaerobic power. Additionally, the results suggest that for games in which the court area per player is smaller, differences in basic techniques might affect the number of ball contacts during a game, while for games in which the number of players is larger, differences in aerobic capacity might affect the total movement distance during a game.

“We Got Game!”

This article provides estimates of differences in game play between the WNBA and NBA. Game outcome measures that are absolute (win or loss) and relative (ratio of final points) both reveal differential impacts of relative characteristics of play (ratio of shooting percentages, rebounding, assists, turnovers, personal fouls, and differences in steals and blocked shots). A stochastic frontier model is estimated and used to generate (relative) efficiency measures of play that further reveal differences between the two leagues.

Study of Values in Indian Male Athletes

LANGUAGE NOTE | Document text in English; abstract also in Chinese.Values and attitudes are the guiding force of one's behavior. His preferences and priorities are based on his attitudinal leaning which originate from the values prevailing in his close environment. Sport by its nature is a social activity in which large number of people are involved and interact for the shared purpose. Human beings learn to be social beings, because an individual affiliates and reaffiliates with different sports groups, resulting in the change of value system. These observations prompted the author to investigate the values of Indian male athletes. The sample of the study comprised 809 male athletes drawn from 14 different sports disciplines, undergoing regular diploma course at SAI NS NIS Patiala &amp; Gandhinagar. The age of the subjects ranged between 18-30 years and Modernization Scale by Singh et al (1987) standardized on Indian population was administered to collect the data. The results revealed that inter game differences existed in marriage, educational and global values.運動的價值及對運動態度有關的研究多受到社會因素和環境的影響，人類懂得從運動中領略到價值的重要。本文旨在調查印度男性運動員對運動價值的觀點，受訪的809名18至30歲的男性運動員中，發現他們在婚姻及敎育的觀點上出現顯著分別。

Expert‐Novice Differences in Game Performance and Game Understanding of Youth Badminton Players

The purpose of this investigation was to examine differences in skill, game performance and game understanding in expert (n=12) and novice (n=14) youth badminton players (13‐14 years). Each subject participated in skill tests (serve, clear and drop) and a game understanding test which consisted of 15 different video simulations of actual offensive and defensive game situations. In every sequence, players were to solve tactical problems by selecting appropriate solutions and arguments for their decisions. In addition they played 2 x 10‐min singles badminton. AH matches were video recorded and post match analysed. Results clearly showed that skill, game play and cognitive components all differentiated experts from novices. Experts exhibited significantly more sport skill, played more effective shots and understood the game situations better when compared to novices. Based on the findings it could be suggested that all these qualities must be taken into account when teaching/coaching games in order to increase competence, interest and enjoyment in games playing.

Arcade Video Games: Proxemic, Cognitive and Content Analyses

The purpose of this enquiry was to determine the psychological complexity and reinforcement characteristics of a sample of the most popular arcade video games; to determine sex differences in game ...