| 1. |
- Berglund, Aseel, 1973-, et al.
(author)
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Effects of Reactive and Strategic Game Mechanics in Motion-based Games
- 2017
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In: 2017 IEEE 5TH INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON SERIOUS GAMES AND APPLICATIONS FOR HEALTH (SEGAH). - : IEEE. - 9781509054824
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Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Motion-based games offer positive effects on physical, social, and mental health for the players and have been common during the past decade, enabled by commercial motion tracking devices. However, little is known about the impact of game mechanics on the player experience, movement, and performance in motion-based games. In this paper we present results from a study with 35 participants comparing two different game mechanics, one reactive and one strategic, for a casual motion-based game. The assumption was that a more strategic mechanic would lead to less movement but more enjoyment. However, there was no significant difference in player experience, performance, or movement between the two game mechanics. In addition, a key aspect for the players preferred game mechanics was the perceived amount of thinking the game mechanic required.
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| 2. |
- Berglund, Aseel, 1973-, et al.
(author)
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Liopep: A Gamified Casual Exergame Application to help Office Workers not be Active Couch Potatoes
- 2023
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In: Proceeding of the <em>2023 IEEE 11th International Conference on Serious Games and Applications for Health</em>. - : Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). - 9798350346077 - 9798350346084
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Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Prolonged sedentary life is associated with several health risks. Office work is characterized by prolonged sedentary time and contributes significantly to the total sedentary exposure for office employees. This work aims to investigate the combination of casual exergames with gamification, two concepts that can impact behavior change, to decrease the prolonged sitting time for office workers, by interrupting long periods of sitting. A gamified web-based break application for micro-training using casual exergames and movement exercises was designed. A user study with office workers was conducted where workers had access to the application for 45 weeks, during which reward-based gamification was introduced in the application during an 11-week period and usage was compared before, during, and after the introduction of the reward-based game elements. The results showed that participants reported a positive experience of the application and that the breaks during the reward-based gamification period was higher compared to the period before and after the inclusion of the reward-based gamification.
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| 3. |
- Berglund, Aseel, 1973-, et al.
(author)
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The Attractiveness and Effectiveness of Upper Body and Full Body Casual Exergame Controllers
- 2023
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In: <em>2023 IEEE 11th International Conference on Serious Games and Applications for Health</em>, SeGAH, IEEE, 2023. - : IEEE. - 9798350346077 - 9798350346084
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Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Exergames, active videogames in which players use their bodies to control the game, have been successful under certain conditions to produce enjoyable experiences and physical benefits. Casual exergames have been developed with simple game mechanics and short game play durations with the intent to promote exertion. Previous research has suggested that using full body game controllers in exergames compared to upper body movements has greater potential in producing high levels of exertion. In the present work we explore the impact of using upper compared to full body exergame controllers on players’ level of perceived immersion, perceived control, and perceived exertion in the context of casual exergames. A between subject, quasi-experiment was conducted with 80 participants, playing the same casual exergame with either upper body movement controllers or full body movement controllers. The results showed a significant difference between groups in terms of perceived control but not in terms of perceived immersion or perceived exertion. Based on the findings we recommend that casual exergame designers do not overlook the use of upper body game controllers in casual exergames but consider them as an alternative to using full body game controllers.
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| 4. |
- Berglund, Aseel, 1973-, et al.
(author)
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Understanding and assessing gamification in digital healthcare interventions for patients with cardiovascular disease
- 2022
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In: European Journal of Cardiovascular Nursing. - : Oxford University Press. - 1474-5151 .- 1873-1953. ; 21:6, s. 630-638
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Gamification is defined as the use of game design elements in contexts other than gaming to increase user engagement and experience. Gamification in cardiovascular care can contribute to positively change health behaviour with possible effects and benefits on physical health and mental well-being. Based on previous literature, in this article we describe: the conceptualization of gamification, the five gamification principles for gamified digital health programmes or applications, the six most common game elements used to impact health behaviour applied in gamified digital health interventions and finally scientifically validated instruments to use for assessment of gamification in terms of self-reported psychological outcomes.
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| 5. |
- Berglund, Erik, 1971-, et al.
(author)
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Considerations for Player Enjoyment and Exertion in Casual Exergames
- 2024
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In: Proceedings of the 57th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences. - : University of Hawai'i at Manoa. - 9780998133171 ; , s. 1328-1337
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Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- One approach to reduce sedentary behavior isthrough casual exergames, exergames with simplegame mechanics played during short time increments.Casual exergames have shown success in producingenjoyable experiences and sufficient levels of exertion.Yet, previous research has neglected what to considerin order to design enjoyable and exerting experiencesin casual exergames. The present work explores thisaspect through an exploratory mixed methodsresearch design, comparing the perceived exertionand enjoyment of four different casual exergames. Inrelation to traditional exergame guidelines werecommend that casual exergames focus on allowingfor high ambiguity of movements, balance thecognitive complexity of the game, and direct players’attention from the body by utilizing fast game pace.
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| 6. |
- Berglund, Erik, 1971-, et al.
(author)
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The Effect of Assigned Goals in Casual Exergames on Performance, Exertion and Enjoyment
- 2023
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In: In <em>2023 IEEE 11th International Conference on Serious Games and Applications for Health</em>, SeGAH, IEEE, 2023. - : Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). - 9798350346077 - 9798350346084
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Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Casual exergames offer potential in decreasing sedentary behavior. Yet, little is known about how casual exergames can be designed to provide higher levels of physical effectiveness and psychological attractiveness. From the lens of goal setting theory, we explore if assigned goals affect players performance, exertion, and enjoyment in a casual exergame. A quasi-experimental design was applied, comparing the performance, exertion, and enjoyment during two game rounds for a group exposed to a specific goal setting prompt in the second game round, compared to a control group. Further analysis was conducted on how the participants changes in performance, exertion and enjoyment between game rounds was affected by either receiving or not receiving the goal setting prompt. The results support the notion that assigned goals in casual exergames result in higher performance, exertion, and enjoyment on a group level. Furthermore, the results showed that on an individual level the assigned goal resulted in a higher increase in exertion between game rounds, but not in performance nor enjoyment.
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| 7. |
- Berglund, Erik, 1971-, et al.
(author)
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Using MediaPipe Machine Learning to Design Casual Exertion Games to Interrupt Prolonged Sedentary Lifestyle
- 2023
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In: HCI in Games. - 9783031359309 - 9783031359293 ; , s. 237-251
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Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Casual exergames have shown potential in providing sufficient levels of exertion to decrease sedentary behavior. However, previous casual exergame implementations do not follow the guidelines of allowing for shorter (2-3 minute) active breaks during more regular increments. To evaluate if casual exergames could be applied following the guidelines of shorter more regular increments we designed and developed a casual exergame using MediaPipe. The resulting game, Balloon Pump, was evaluated at a game and cosplay festival with 60 participants playing the game. After game play, perceived exertion, control and immersion, and overall experience of the game, was measured and the performance and number of movements were noted. The results from the evaluation study showed that the game was perceived as controllable, had produced sufficient levels of exertion, and was perceived as fun. The immersive experience of the game was low and the participants commented on several ways in which this aspect could be improved, such as adding more incentives and variation in the game.
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| 8. |
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| 9. |
- Strömbäck, Filip, et al.
(author)
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The Progression of Students’ Ability to Work With Scope, Parameter Passing and Aliasing
- 2023
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In: ACE '23. - New York, NY, USA : Association for Computing Machinery. - 9781450399418 ; , s. 39-48
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Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Students need the ability to reason about the behavior of programs when working with advanced concepts like concurrency and abstraction. To achieve this, students require core programming skills that allow them to trace and predict the outcome of a program. While previous research indicates that teachers cannot expect students to acquire all core programming skills after their introductory CS course, less is known of students’ progression in later years. In this study, we investigate 397 students’ ability to predict the outcome of short computer programs. The participants are from different programs and progressions in their studies. We find that students, regardless of program and year, struggle with predicting the outcome of short programs that require an accurate mental model of some less readily apparent concepts, such as references. Further, we discover that there is no significant improvement in the first three years. Finally, we propose further avenues of research to improve these learning outcomes.
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| 10. |
- Ahmad, Azeem, 1984-, et al.
(author)
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The Perceived Effects of Introducing Coaching on the Development of Student's Soft Skills Managing Software Quality.
- 2021
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In: Proceedings of 4th Software Engineering Education Workshop (SEED 2021) co-located with APSEC 2021, 06-Dec, 2021, Taipei, Taiwan.
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Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Technical abilities (also known as hard skills) are just as crucial as soft skills (such as communication, cooperation, teamwork, etc.) in attaining professional success. Therefore it is important to pay much attention to soft skills when developing the curriculum of engineering educations. Many elements can have a direct or indirect impact on students’ soft skills, including course topic, course module (i.e., laboratories, seminars, etc.), the medium of instruction, and learning activities. Many academics have investigated the development of soft skills in a variety of disciplines, including engineering, science, and business. The purpose of this study is to assess the perceived impact of coaching on the development of soft skills in MS and BS engineering students. During four planned sessions over a six-month period, MS students acted as coachers, while BS students received coaching from MS students. After each coaching session, all students were asked to complete a survey to evaluate their perception for how their soft skills had developed. The results of the perceived effects of introducing coaching activities are presented in this article. This article is a first step, in the series of our investigation, in identifying the students’ perceptions about the development of soft skills. According to the survey, the MS engineering students who were the coachers had perceived to improve most of their soft skills. However, in the perception of BS students, their soft skills did not improve as compared to MS students, prompting us to conduct additional research in the future to discover what hampered the growth of BS students’ soft skills as well as how MS students’ soft skills were enhanced.
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| 11. |
- Berglund, Aseel, 1973-
(author)
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Augmenting the Remote Control : Studies in Complex Information Navigation for Digital TV
- 2004
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- The transition to digital TV is changing the television set into an entertainment as well as information supplier device that provides two-way communication with the viewer. However, the present remote control device is not appropriate for navigation through the huge amount of services and information provided by the future digital TV, presumably also a device for accessing the Internet. One possibility for coping with the complex information navigation required by TV viewers is an augmentation of the interaction tools currently available for TV. Two approaches to such an augmentation are investigated in this thesis: linking paper-based TV guides to the digital TV and enhancing the remote control unit with speech interaction.Augmentation of paper-based TV guides is a futuristic research approach based on the integration of paper-based TV guides into computation technology. This solution provides interactive paper-based TV guides that also function as a remote control for the TV. A prototype system is developed and explorative studies are conducted to investigate this approach. These studies indicate the benefits of integrating paper-based TV guides into the TV set. They also illuminate the potential to provide innovative solutions for home information systems. Integrating familiar physical artefacts, such as paper and pen into TV technology may provide easy access to information services usually provided by PCs and the Internet. Thus, the same augmentation needed for TV as an entertainment device also opens up new communication channels for providing society information to citizens who do not feel comfortable with conventional computers.The thesis also reports on studies of speech interfaces for TV information navigation. Traditional speech interfaces have several common problems, such as user acceptance and misinterpretation of user input. These problems are investigated in empirical and explorative studies with implementation of mockups and running research systems. We have found that the pragmatic solution of augmenting remote control devices by speech is a suitable solution that eases information navigation and search.
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| 12. |
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| 13. |
- Berglund, Aseel, 1973-, et al.
(author)
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Higher-education students’ perceptions of point-based gamification in a learning management system
- 2023
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In: GamiFIN Conference 2023. - : CEUR.
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Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Research on gamified learning in higher education has displayed positive, negative, and non-significant results. To understand what makes gamification successful there is a need to study individual game elements over time. The aim of the present study is to investigate the game element points over time in a higher education context, in relation to the hedonic and utilitarian aspects of a gamified learning management system. A scale was developed based on utilitarian, hedonic and motivational elements of the point system, uncovering two main components: utilitarian and hedonic perception of points, and motivational perception of points. The results showed that the perception of the points was positively correlated to the utilitarian and hedonic perception of a gamified learning management system, and that novelty effects are present in terms of the perception of points.
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| 14. |
- Berglund, Aseel, 1973-, et al.
(author)
-
Higher education students’ perceptions of point-based gamification in a Learning Management System
- 2023
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In: Proceedings of the 7th International GamiFIN Conference, Lapland, Finland, April 18-21, 2023. - : CEUR-WS.org. ; , s. 144-153
-
Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- To understand what makes gamification successful there is a need to study individual game elements over time. The aim of the present longitudinal case study was to investigate the game element points in a higher-education context, in relation to the hedonic and utilitarian aspects of a gamified learning management system and novelty effects. A scale was developed based on utilitarian, hedonic and motivational elements of the point system, uncovering two main components: perceived value of points, and perceived motivation of points. The results showed that the perception of the points was positively related to the hedonic perception of a gamified learning management system, and that novelty effects are present. Based on the results, we suggest that points in higher education should be designed with regards to how students perceive the value and motivational aspects behind them and with considerations of how novelty effects can be mitigated.
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| 15. |
- Berglund, Aseel, 1973-
(author)
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Online Courses for Teaching Engineering Professionalism
- 2023
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Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- In today’s team-based and distributed workplaces, engineers who work together to solve complex technical challenges require technical competencies but also require other engineering professional skills, e.g., the ability to work in multidisciplinary teams, the ability to deal with social issues, and self-awareness. Therefore, engineering educational programs need to prepare students for the demands of their future workplaces. The COVID-19 pandemic required changes in education, one of which was to switch to a distance-learning mode. Teaching professional skills for engineering students was already challenging, and it became even harder during the COVID-19 pandemic with the demand for distance-based learning through online courses. Transitioning to an online delivery format typically requires substantial re-tooling of traditional courses. Our study is based on converting an eight-week on-campus professional skills course, where the physical meeting had been a central component of the pedagogy, to an online course during the COVID-19 pandemic. Four professional skill topics were taught in the course. 74 students signed up for the course and 87% completed the course. In the paper we discuss both positive and potentially problematic aspects of online courses for teaching professional skills in engineering education.
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| 16. |
- Berglund, Aseel, 1973-
(author)
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Professionalism for engineers: soft skills in engineering education to prepare for professional life
- 2018
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Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- A strong set of hard and soft skills are required for an engineer to succeed in today’s teambased workplaces. In order to prepare students for the profession, engineering education needs to focus on both. However, traditional engineering programs do not place enough emphasis on the development of soft skills, despite the guidelines specified in CDIO Standard 2: Learning Outcomes. Our proposition is that by focusing on soft skills such as self-motivation and personal leadership skills, students will be better prepared for professional practice and their academic performance will benefit as well. In this paper we present an innovative approach for teaching soft skills that we have implemented in the course “Professionalism for Engineers, PE” offered in two 5-year programs in computer science. A variety of tools are presented in the class and students get experience using them in mandatory assignments. Reflection is a fundamental assessment method in the course and reflective writing based on the Gibbs reflective cycle (Gibbs, 1988) is applied, as well as the Dialogue Seminar Method, to develop the students’ reflective ability and to allow them to learn from their own and others’ experiences. Among the lessons covered, students say the most rewarding include lessons that involve students from other disciplines, such as psychology students, and the use of the Dialogue Seminar Method with groups of students from years 1, 2, and 3. The effect this course has on academic and professional performance is hard to assess this far. Based on the experiences of the PE, a new course has been developed for two 3-year programs in computer engineering and engineering electronics. The new course is described in this paper. Students in the 5-years programs who have finished the PE will be mentors in the course.
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| 17. |
- Eriksson, Lars, et al.
(author)
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On Visual, Vibrotactile, and 3D Audio Directional Cues for Dismounted Soldier Waypoint Navigation
- 2008
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In: PROCEEDINGS of the HUMAN FACTORS AND ERGONOMICS SOCIETY 52nd ANNUAL MEETING—2008. - Los Angeles : Sage Publications. - 2169-5067 .- 1071-1813. ; , s. 1282-1286
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Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We compared a visual GPS, a tactile torso belt, and a 3D audio display in a waypoint navigation task for dismounted soldiers. Using these displays one at a time, the soldier’s main tasks were to walk as fast and straight as possible towards the waypoints while visually scanning the terrain for detection of target flags. The results showed that all three types of displays gave similar navigation precision and target detection performance. The visual display entailed a somewhat higher navigation speed than the tactile and 3D audio displays. Both the visual and 3D audio displays, however, were rated as directing attention away from the terrain more than the tactile display. Compared to the tactile display, a higher mental workload was reported for the 3D audio, which was also rated least suitable for operational use in navigation tasks. Yet, the soldiers’ ability to localize directions to waypoints with the 3D audio display may point to its potential use for radio communication and cueing of directions to threats. In an overall evaluation, eight soldiers preferred the tactile display and four the visual, while none preferred the 3D audio. We discuss the results mainly regarding shortcomings of the study and the possibility of developing and combining the three display types for the dismounted soldier.
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| 18. |
- Hultcrantz, Johanna, et al.
(author)
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Contextual Workshops: User Participation in the Evaluation of Future Comcepts
- 2002
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In: Proceedings of the 7th Biennial Participatory Design Conference 2002. - Palo Alto, CA : Proceedings of the Participatory Design Conference. - 0966781821
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Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Involving the users in the design process in order to understand their current situation and to generate new ideas for the development of future products and services is highly relevant to achieve a good result. There are several Participatory Design activities available for generating new ideas and concepts. There are also several activities available for the development of specific concepts and ideas. However, there are few if any activities available that address the choice of which concepts and ideas that should be further developed when there are several alternatives. In this paper we present an activity designed for this purpose: Contextual Workshop. The activity uses visual presentations of ideas and concepts as a basis for focus group meetings with presumptive users. Furthermore the focus groups consist of members who already know each other and the workshops are conducted in the context of use for the presented ideas and concepts. Several advantages but also drawbacks with the activity Contextual Workshops are possible to identify and these are also discussed in this paper.
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| 19. |
- Hultcrantz, Johanna, et al.
(author)
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Contextual Workshops: User Participation in the Evaluation of Future Comcepts.
- 2002
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In: PDC 02 Proceedings of the Participatory Design Conference. - 0966781821
-
Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Involving the users in the design process in order to understand their current situation and to generate new ideas for the development of future products and services is highly relevant to achieve a good result. There are several Participatory Design activities available for generating new ideas and concepts. There are also several activities available for the development of specific concepts and ideas. However, there are few if any activities available that address the choice of which concepts and ideas that should be further developed when there are several alternatives. In this paper we present an activity designed for this purpose: Contextual Workshop. The activity uses visual presentations of ideas and concepts as a basis for focus group meetings with presumptive users. Furthermore the focus groups consist of members who already know each other and the workshops are conducted in the context of use for the presented ideas and concepts. Several advantages but also drawbacks with the activity Contextual Workshops are possible to identify and these are also discussed in this paper.
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