eSports Players Research Articles

Analysis of sensorimotor abilities and nervous system properties of players of different e-sports disciplines

The article presents the results of the study of the properties of the nervous system, the speed of simple and complex reactions, short-term visual memory of first-person shooter CS: GO and multiplayer battle arena DOTA 2. Relevance of the description of individual typological personality traits of participants relationships with indicators of gaming activity is associated with the possibility of creating psychodiagnostic tools to determine the propensity to certain disciplines of e-sports, the development of psychological foundations to improve the effectiveness of training and competitive activities of e-sportsmen based on their individuality, prevention of psychological risks of e-sports. Purpose: to identify and analyze individual sensorimotor abilities and properties of the nervous system of players who prefer different e-sports genres. Research methods: theoretical analysis of literature sources, pedagogical testing, methods of mathematical statistics. The study involved e-sports players Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (n = 18) and DOTA 2 (n = 10) aged 18-20 years. According to the playing experience, the number of playing hours per week, the regularity of participation in competitions and their level, these players were classified as amateurs. It is established that the main factors determining the effectiveness of e-sports are sensorimotor coordination, nervous system properties, cognitive properties, technical and tactical skills, social communication skills and more. In games of both genres, the speed of simple and complex reactions has been found to be important, but it is most effective in combination with a high level of technical and tactical training. Analysis of the results of the study showed that players in different e-sports disciplines have some differences in sensorimotor abilities, but at the level of amateurs guilt does not have a significant difference. At the same time, they have significant differences in the type of nervous system.

Are eSports more than just sitting? A study comparing energy expenditure

Aim: To investigate the energy expenditure of amateur eSport athletes between sitting and aneSport gaming session. Materials & methods: Eleven amateur male eSport athletes (age: 21.73±3.50years, weight: 76.00±12.51kg, height: 1.81±0.06m) were included. After recording the resting values, eSports playing values were recorded using an open circulation oxygen consumption analyzer (QuarkCPET, COSMED, Albano Laziale, Italy). Also, action per min(APM) scores were recorded. Results: When comparing the respiratory frequency, metabolic equivalent of task values and energy expenditure values of the participants, asignificant increase was observed in all three values (p<0.05 for each). Conclusion: eSports players, who are considered to be physically inactive by sitting, spend approximately 40% more energy than sitting, even at theamateur level. According to APM, more energy can be spent in tournaments and at the elite level.

The Biopsychosocial Factors That Impact eSports Players’ Well-Being: A Systematic Review

The purpose of this article is to review the known biopsychosocial risks of participation in eSports. The authors used The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines to systematically review the existing literature on risks to well-being for amateur and professional eSports players. Risks are conceptualized and categorized with the biopsychosocial model. Our literature review surfaced several biopsychosocial risk factors associated with eSports. Some of these risks included poor nutrition, caffeine supplementation, physiological arousal, injury, pain, stress, maladaptive coping, cognitive fatigue, gaming addiction, mental ill-health, harassment, and racism. We found little support for eSports players being at risk due to sedentary behavior or an increased body mass index. These results are expected to inform support staff members and industry professionals.

Behavioral Analysis of Personality, Branding and Emotional State in e-Sports

E-sports have grown in popularity on a worldwide scale. Recent assessments place the industry's value at more than $612 million, with operations spanning Europe, North America, and Asia's emerging economies. Nowadays, e-Sports are being hailed as a highly effective marketing channel for businesses. The current study attempted to analyze the personal profiles of e-sports players in order to offer them with marketing privileges that would enable them to promote their companies more effectively. Three self-report questionnaires were used to collect data: the Profile of Mood States, the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire, the Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire, and the Brand Personality Appeal Questionnaire. The collected data were analyzed using appropriate transformations to provide a suitable format for implementing the corresponding machine learning algorithms available in the R software package. The findings of this study demonstrate, among other things, that mood state, emotional intelligence, and brand personality can all serve as critical variables and are prevalent in marketing literature covering a broad range of topics, including evidence that the mood state, emotional intelligence, and brand personality profiles of e-sports players can all serve as significant variables.

Mental health symptoms in electronic football players

BackgroundThe escalated competitive pressure and professionalisation of esports players could predispose them to mental health symptoms. We aimed to develop a model to explore the association between distress and anxiety/depression...

Physical Activity and Health Promotion in Esports and Gaming-Discussing Unique Opportunities for an Unprecedented Cultural Phenomenon.

Due to long periods of sedentary behavior, and unhealthy diets gamers and esports players are at risk for numerous chronic diseases and all-cause mortality. Health research has started addressing the public health implications of the esports phenomenon, drawing a bleak picture of this megatrend. However, instead of just highlighting adverse public health implications of this trend, it is recommended to become involved in this phenomenon and positively influence it. Esports has an enormous potential for physical activity and health-promoting efforts, provides a context for broadly disseminating interventions, and offers new ways of gaining access to an often-neglected population. This paper presents: the potential of the esports phenomenon to promote physical activity, health, and well-being in gamers and esports players; the strategic and preventive solutions to ameliorate esports possible adverse health impacts; and the utilization of esports technology (streams, media platforms, exergames, etc.) as an innovative health promotion tool, especially reaching gamers and esports players with attractive and interactive interventions. This is to encourage systematic scientific research so that evidence-based guidelines and intervention strategies involving regular physical activity, healthy diet, and sleep hygiene for esports will be developed. The goal is to promote public health approaches that move toward a better integration of esports and gaming.

Are They Athletes? A Self-Assessment of Athletic Identity Measurement and Perceived Benefits of Collegiate Esports Participants

Collegiate esports is a rapidly growing entity that is managed differently across campuses, with oversight taking place in athletic departments, campus recreation departments, student affairs, and to a lesser degree, academic departments. Esports has the potential to support the recruitment and retention of students while supporting the academic mission of universities through co-curricular opportunities in a variety of subject areas. Despite the broad existence of peer-reviewed research debating the consideration of esports as a sport, limited research is available that asks esports participants if they view themselves as athletes. A total of 120 participants completed a survey instrument that included items from the Athletic Identity Measurement Scale-Plus and the Quality and Importance of Recreational Services instruments. From the collegiate esports players included in this research, we see a complex picture of student-athletes emerging.

Professional Esports Players are not Obese: Analysis of Body Composition Based on Years of Experience

Esports are considered a form of electronic sports that have become an important element of popular culture. Its evolution and continuous development have led to consider esports as a profession, increasing the number of players, practice modalities and hours of play dedicated to this field. Therefore, scientific and economic contributions have increased in recent years, however, there is little research on body composition in this group of players. To describe the anthropometric characteristics and body composition in professional esports players according to the years of experience. The sample consisted of 53 esports players competing in the Spanish professional league, with a mean age of 21.01 ? 0.39 years, whose body composition was measured by electrical bioimpedance with the TANITA® BC-601F Segment device. No differences were found between groups nor significant associations according to linear regression (p<0.05) between body composition variables and years of experience as a professional player. The years of practice, as well as the esports practiced have no influence on the body composition of professional esports players.

Breaking up prolonged sitting with a 6 min walk improves executive function in women and men esports players: a randomised trial

ObjectiveThe effect of prolonged sitting on executive function and performance in competitive esports players are unknown. This study aimed to evaluate executive function following a 6 min bout of walking...

Exploring on Gender Perception in eSports Gamers

Purpose The purpose of this study is to investigate gender perception of eSports gamers.Methods 8 male gamers in the professional team were selected purposeful and snowball sampling. Data were collected through face-to-face and online interviews, and analyzed by content analysis and classification analysis.Results Esport gamers explained their indirect experiences with female gamers. The results are as follows. First, it was confirmed that the number of female gamers was small and they had a negative stigma image, and this consistently reproduced the gender role stereotype of female gamers in digital games. Second, in the game world, men are swearing, verbal abuse, and sexual harassment against female gamers, which suggests that female gamers are viewed as targets of sexual play from the perspective of the strongest. Third, eSports male gamers are characterized by being conservative or open to gender perceptions by age. We discussed what to need in eSports which is male dominated area should give to opportunity for equality education.Conclusions In-depth understanding of gender perception in e-sports players should be prioritized in order to change gender perception. Therefore, it would be an important research topic bring to discuss. This paper is expected to be a beneficial material for eSports gender studies and stimulate to discuss gender imbalance.

Modern digital technologies in the system of professional training of specialists for esports

Introduction. The article is devoted to the problem of optimization of didactic conditions of complex support of professional training of specialists for modern esports on the basis of modern digital technologies. The article presents the literature review and the main content of research work aimed at creating it-services "KiberLab", allowing to identify the level of readiness for professional activity of the players and providing the possibility of determining on the basis of preliminary complex diagnostics of the optimal strategy (content, methods and phases) comprehensive support for the professional training of cyberhighway, aimed at improving its gaming potential. The significance of the results obtained and the possibility of using the IT service in the system of professional training of specialists for esports are determinedMaterials and Methods. When writing the article, the following methods were used: theoretical analysis of domestic and foreign literary sources; generalization and systematization of the results of a sociological survey of specialists in the field of cyber industry, experimental methods for studying professionally significant characteristics of an esportsman; methods of statistical processing of experimental data, experimental modeling, design and programming of an IT serviceResults. Based on the theoretical study of the problem, a model of comprehensive support for professional training of specialists for esports was developed. In order to optimize the diadactic conditions of comprehensive support of professional training of an esports player, an IT service was developed and tested, including safe and effective psychophysiologically based algorithms and methods of professional training and support of esports players. During 2019-2020, on the basis of the Laboratory of Esports Records, tasks were implemented to introduce modern digital technologies into the system of comprehensive support for the professional training of esports athletes. The IT service "Cyber Lab" was developed, which was experimentally tested and implemented in the practical work of the laboratory as part of the ongoing activities to provide comprehensive support for the professional training of esports athletes who are at different stages of professional development. 60 athletes, including 35 players who expressed their desire and consent to participate in the testing of the new model of support and 25 players included in the comparative study group, took part in the experimental testing of the Model of integrated support for professional training of esports athletes using an automated IT service that allows for a comprehensive study and development of the athlete's playing potential. At the end of the initial survey, individual profiles were compiled that reflect the game potential of each player and the structure of their psychophysiological and psychological indicators that correlate with individual game achievements. The primary identified indicators in the control and experimental groups did not have significant differences, i.e. the initial level in both groups was comparable in all characteristics. Based on the automated comparative analysis of the obtained data, individual recommendations and training programs were developed, aimed at optimizing the psychophysiological prerequisites of the athletes ' playing potential. At the end of the study, in February 2020, a second study of the individual indicators of esports players was conducted. A comparative analysis of the results of the repeated study of the experimental participants showed that the game performance in the experimental group improved by 17.8 % compared to the 9.3% obtained by the players in the comparative analysis group.Experimental testing of the developed information and digital technology has shown that the use of an automated IT service for comprehensive support of professional training of an esports player contributes not only to increasing its gaming potential, improving game performance indicators (including rating growth), but also to the implementation of health-saving technologies in the professional activity of esports players with different levels of professional skill.Discussion and Conclusions. The conducted research allowed to draw a conclusion that at the present stage of development of digital technologies it is necessary to carry out development and implementation of effective IT services in the system of complex support of professional training of esports players.

Nutritional behaviour of (Non-)eSports players – a comparative study

Demand for eSports has generated considerable attention from the sport, event, and entertainment industries. However, time is spent playing and watching the computer games and is not related to physical activity. The aim of this study is to focus on nutritional behaviour between persons who practice eSports and those who do not practice eSports. A standardized questionnaire was implemented and, in total, 339 completed questionnaires were generated. The results show that participants who are not playing eSports games are significant healthier, doing more sports, are older, have higher incomes, eat more fruits and vegetables, but drink more caffeine and alcohol. In summary, the study shows that playing eSports games tend to have a negative impact on a healthy and sporting lifestyle.

ESPORTS INTEGRITY POLICIES

ESPORTS INTEGRITY POLICIES

Comparison of Reaction Time Between eSports Players of Different Genres and Sportsmen

Quick reactions are considered important in both, traditional and electronic sports and research findings suggest that reaction time can be optimized by both sports activity and playing action video games. In this study, reaction and motor times of 18 professional and 21 non-professional eSports players from different genres and 36 non-professional traditional sportsmen were compared using the Vienna Test System. No differences between the groups were found in simple visual, acoustic, and choice reaction times. Differentiated by game genre, players from sports simulations had significantly shorter reaction times than MOBA players in the acoustic and choice reaction test. The results of this study suggest that traditional sports and eSports may improve reaction times to a similar amount. Furthermore, various game genres require different reaction times or may affect related abilities in different ways.

Comparison of Multiple Object Tracking Performance Between Professional and Amateur eSport Players as Well as Traditional Sportsmen

High performance in multiple object tracking paradigms is associated with well-trained visuo-spatial abilities, visual memory and divided attention. These abilities are essential for both traditional sport and esport. The present study compared the tracking performance of professional as well as amateur esport players and traditional sportsmen. Professional esport players outperformed amateurs, while no other group differences were found. Positive association of esport playtime and tracking performance as well as elevated tracking scores of the entire study cohort compared to normal population indicate a connection of esport and sport activity and tracking performance.

Leveling Up Teamwork in Esports

A large body of research has underscored the importance of the cognitive process of team cognition and its relation to team performance. However, little research has focused on applying such an important teamwork process to computer-mediated collaboration within a fast-paced virtual environment. In this paper, we use esports as a research platform to address this limitation due to its fast-paced nature and its heavy reliance on teamwork. We report the experience and perceptions of 20 players with regard to their descriptions of team cognition within esports. We found that esports players relied on their game experience and understanding of role interdependencies in order to develop team cognition with strangers. We also found that experienced teams utilized a mutual understanding of teammate skills and personalities in order to predict responses and limit the verbal communication required to make quick team decisions. We contribute to CSCW by extending the cognitive understanding of computer-mediated collaboration and by advancing research on team cognition and how it can occur within a fast-paced virtual environment.

The effects of competitive and interactive play on physiological state in professional esports players

In esports competitions, both motor skills used to manipulate an avatar and psychological skills are important to achieve optimal performance. Previous studies have investigated the role of psychological skill on computer game performance by observing the modulation of physiological state. However, how physiological state is modulated in esports athletes during an esports match is unclear. In this study, we examined two hypotheses to clarify the effects of competitive and interactive play on the physiological state of esports professionals: (1) the sympathetic nervous system of esports players is activated by competitive play and modulated by the game situation, and (2) the autonomic nervous system activities of players in dyads are synchronized positively/negatively by interpersonal interaction.We measured electrocardiograms (ECGs) in nine professional esports players while they played a fighting video game to investigate changes in physiological state. We compared ECGs collected in the resting state, while playing against a computer, and while playing against other players. We calculated the mean heart rate (HR), temporal pattern of HR, and correlation of temporal HR patterns of the pairs in the player-versus-player condition.The results showed that mean HR was elevated by the presence of a human opponent compared with a computer opponent, and an increase in mean HR was also observed in specific game situations (beginning of the match, toward the end of a game or match). These results suggest that the sympathetic nervous system in esports players is activated by competitive play and is modulated by the game situation. In addition, the temporal HR patterns in the opponent pairs were synchronized, suggesting that autonomic nervous system activity is synchronized in player dyads via interpersonal interaction during competitive play. Our results provide insight regarding the relationship between physiological state and psychological skill in esports professionals during esports competitions.

The effect of expertise, training and neurostimulation on sensory-motor skill in esports

Recently, increased attention has been directed to the brain to better understand how motor skill expertise develops. One promising technique purported to accelerate motor skill improvement is transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS). While simple fine motor tasks involving the hands and fingers are most frequently used to investigate the role of tDCS on motor skill learning, less work has examined the role of tDCS on complex sensori-motor tasks applicable to occupational, sport, and daily living activities. Esports require a high degree of sensori-motor control and have become one of the most popular forms of digital entertainment worldwide. Currently, no research has quantified the development of motor skill expertise in esports or whether tDCS can enhance skill improvement. The current study aimed to first differentiate the sensorimotor performance of a key gameplay skill among esports players of different skill levels. Secondly, we quantified the training effect on performance. Finally, we investigated the effect of tDCS on performance improvements. We hypothesized that esport players would perform superiorly compared to novice gamers, that all groups would be able to improve their performance through training, and that tDCS would enhance training induced performance improvements. We found that performance on a single fundamental esport skill can differentiate expertise among novice and skilled players, that training can significantly improve performance among all expertise levels and that tDCS preferentially accelerates the performance improvements of novice players. The implications of this work, specifically regarding the temporal application of tDCS during complex motor skill learning and rehabilitation, are discussed.

The Role of Experience, Perceived Match Importance, and Anxiety on Cortisol Response in an Official Esports Competition.

The aim of the present study was to analyse the neuroendocrine stress response, psychological anxiety response, and perceived match importance (PMI) between expert and non-expert control gamers in an official competitive context. We analyzed, in 25 expert esports players and 20 control participants, modifications in their somatic anxiety, cognitive anxiety, self-confidence, PMI, and cortisol in a League of Legends competition. We found how expert esports players presented higher cortisol concentrations (Z = 155.5; p = 0.03; Cohen’s d = −0.66), cognitive anxiety (Z = 99.5; p = 0.001), and PMI (Z = 50.5; p < 0.001) before the competition than non-experts participants. We found a greater statistical weight in the cognitive variables than in the physiological ones. The results obtained suggest that real competitive context and player’s expertise were factors associated with an anticipatory stress response. The PMI proved to be a differentiating variable between both groups, highlighting the necessity to include subjective variables that contrast objective measurements.

Basic psychological needs, passion and motivations in amateur and semi-professional eSports players

Electronic sports (eSports) are a category of video games that are played competitively following rules, either in teams or individually. Currently, the top videogame is League of Legends (LoL), a game in the genre known as Multiplayer Online Battle Arena (MOBA) with more than 100 million monthly active players worldwide. Re­search has shown that video games can satisfy basic psychological needs and be experienced as a passion, and that passion is a useful construct to help understand the different motivational patterns of video game use. In addition, no relevant studies have been found with professional players. There­fore, the objective of this study is to explore whether knowledge of the degree of frustration of gamers’ basic psy­chological needs in everyday life, users’ passion and their motives to play makes it possible to distinguish between types of players (amateurs or semi-professionals). The participants were 195 Spanish-speaking LoL players (156 amateurs and 39 semi-profes­sionals) who were passionate about LoL. The results indicate that the game is most often played for competitive, social and exploration reasons. As for passion, players play more out of harmonious passion than out of obsessive passion, the latter being associated with the frustration of basic psychological needs. As a whole, being younger, less motivated by the plot of the game, having greater motivation to improve mental abilities, and spending more hours playing are predictors of the type of player (semi-professional). It is concluded that eSports players are not characterized as obsessed or frustrated people, and that the use of videogames is not necessarily harmful.Los deportes electrónicos (eSports) son un conjunto de videojuegos que se juegan de manera competitiva siguiendo unas reglas, ya sea por equipos o en solitario. Actualmente, el videojuego por excelencia es el League of Legends (LoL), del género Mul­tiplayer Online Battle Arena (MOBA), con más de 100 millones de jugadores mensuales activos a nivel mundial. La investigación ha demostrado que los videojuegos pueden satisfacer necesidades psicológicas básicas y ser vividos como una pasión, y que la pasión es un constructo útil para ayudar a comprender los diferentes patrones motivacionales del uso del videojuego. Además, no se han encontrado estudios relevantes con jugadores profesionales. Así pues, el objetivo de este estudio es explorar si la frustración de las necesidades psicológicas básicas en la vida cotidiana, la pasión y los motivos de juego permiten diferenciar el tipo de jugador (amateur y semi-profesional). Los participantes fueron 195 jugadores de LoL (156 amateurs y 39 semi-profesionales) castellano-hablantes y apasionados al LoL. Los resultados indican que el uso predominante del juego son los motivos competitivos, sociales y de exploración. En cuanto a la pasión, los jugadores juegan más por pasión armoniosa que por pasión obsesiva, siendo esta última junto con la frustración de las necesidades psicológicas básicas las más bajas. En conjunto, tener menor edad, una menor motivación por la historia del juego, una mayor motivación por mejorar las capacidades mentales, y dedicar más horas de juego por semana son predictores del tipo de jugador (semi-profesional). Se concluye que los jugadores de eSports no se caracterizan por ser personas obsesivas o frustradas, y que el uso del videojuego no es necesariamente perjudicial.