This workshop aims to shift perspectives on games for older adults beyond benefits they provide, exploring challenges and opportunities in the design and development of games for older adults that primarily focus on entertainment to provide empowering and engaging experiences.
Call for workshop submissions – Ageing Playfully: Advancing Research on Games for Older Adults Beyond Accessibility and Health Benefits – Half-day Workshop at CHI PLAY 2015 ***
*** Submission deadline August 31st 2015 – Workshop to be held October 4th 2015 in London, UK ***
Submissions are available in two categories. We would like to invite participants with a background in human-computer interaction, game design, and/or games research, who are encouraged to submit two-page position papers in SIGCHI Extended Abstracts format addressing at least one of the following questions:
* What picture of older adults is currently propagated in games research, what are the challenges, and what are the opportunities? How can we create realistic profiles of older adult players?
* What can we learn from previous game design projects addressing older adults, what were the strengths and weaknesses in their design?
* How can we create games that encourage older players to take ownership of their gaming experience, empowering them to actively shape the way they interact with games rather than taking the role of passive consumers?
* How can we balance design efforts that aim to deliver benefits of games with a purpose beyond entertainment to older adults, and consolidate this approach with the idea of playing games purely for entertainment?
* And finally, how should the field prepare itself for the upcoming generations of older adults, which include many individuals who had access to games in their formative years?
Furthermore, we encourage researchers and practitioners with a background in ageing to submit a maximum of five presentation slides outlining challenges that need to be met by the games research community for games to become a meaningful part of older adults’ daily lives.
Submissions will be reviewed by an expert panel. Accepted contributions will be shared through the workshop website and integrated into the workshop program. Please note that at least one author is expected to register for the workshop, and one (or more) days of the conference.
*** Important dates ***
Monday, 31st August 2015, Submit via email to ageingplayfully@gmail.com
Friday, 4th September 2015, Notifications to authors
Sunday, 4th October 2015, Half-day workshop in London, UK
For further detail, please visit the workshop website at http://chiplay15.gerontoludic.com, the conference website at http://www.chiplay.org, or get in touch with the workshop organizers.
Kathrin Gerling, Bob de Schutter, Julie Brown, and Jason Allaire
