Poor health behaviours established in adolescence can have lasting consequences in later life, su... more Poor health behaviours established in adolescence can have lasting consequences in later life, such as obesity and sedentary behaviour. Interventions aimed at changing health behaviour typically have poor results. Serious video games have the potential to offer an intervention grounded in a fun and engaging world. Currently, there is no standard design tool used to help guide developers through the process of designing a serious video game to provoke healthy behaviour change. This paper will review behaviour change techniques (BCTs), discuss game design tools and why there is no current standard and will introduce a card-based design tool that was developed as a result of this analysis. This PhD project has implications for both serious game developers and behavioural psychologists as the design tool will allow stakeholders in game design and behavioural psychology to communicate more effectively in order to realise game-based health interventions. The outcome will be an alternative way to visualise and map behavioural theories in the early-stage development of serious games for healthy behaviour change. Keywords: serious game development tool, serious games for health, behavioural psychology, behaviour change techniques, behaviour change game, behaviour change game tool.
Case study 2: Preparatory resit examination programme at the University of Dundee aims to support... more Case study 2: Preparatory resit examination programme at the University of Dundee aims to support students with resits through a structured, personalised revision programme not only to help students prepare for resit examinations but also to prepare them for success in future studies. Case study 3: Empowering the learner through enhanced engagement at Napier University aims to encourge students and to enable them to take personal ownership of their learning. Research at Anglia Ruskin University aims to develop students' capacity for meta-learning by empowering them to personalise their learning experience through designing, controlling and reflecting upon their learning and critically re-learning in new contexts. Case study 5: Personalising assessment at Oxford Brookes University aims to empower students to make responsible choices of assessment methods by encouraging them to explore their preferred learning styles and equipping them to build on their strengths and develop their weaknesses through assessment. Case study 6: Online learning materials to accommodate heterogeneity in student abilities, aptitudes and aspirations at the University of Edinburgh aims to provide students with flexible access to learning materials, which they can personalise in use to explore topics in depth or breadth depending on their current state of knowledge.
This paper discusses issues relating to the use of online discussion groups on psychology modules... more This paper discusses issues relating to the use of online discussion groups on psychology modules, drawing on the results from three studies investigating Level 1 students' use of asynchronous computer mediated communication (CMC). The first study examined the language use of large groups of students using CMC to discuss essay topics. The second study compared the online and face-to-face discourse of small groups of students evaluating a journal article, in terms of critical thinking. The third study investigated the use of CMC to support small groups of students engaged in problem based learning (PBL). The paper concludes with some recommendations for practitioners.
ion of meaning Understanding Understanding Learning as strategies/ styles/approaches Understandin... more ion of meaning Understanding Understanding Learning as strategies/ styles/approaches Understanding subject matter An interpretative process aimed at understanding reality Seeing something in a different way Seeing something in a different way Personal change Learning as an externally determined event/process Widening horizons Changing as a person Personal fulfilment Growing selfawareness A duty A duty A process not bound by time or context A process not bound by time or context Learning as a developmental process Developing social competence Social competence Learning as student activity Surface
Poor health behaviours established in adolescence can have lasting consequences in later life, su... more Poor health behaviours established in adolescence can have lasting consequences in later life, such as obesity and sedentary behaviour. Interventions aimed at changing health behaviour typically have poor results. Serious video games have the potential to offer an intervention grounded in a fun and engaging world. Currently, there is no standard design tool used to help guide developers through the process of designing a serious video game to provoke healthy behaviour change. This paper will review behaviour change techniques (BCTs), discuss game design tools and why there is no current standard and will introduce a card-based design tool that was developed as a result of this analysis. This PhD project has implications for both serious game developers and behavioural psychologists as the design tool will allow stakeholders in game design and behavioural psychology to communicate more effectively in order to realise game-based health interventions. The outcome will be an alternative way to visualise and map behavioural theories in the early-stage development of serious games for healthy behaviour change. Keywords: serious game development tool, serious games for health, behavioural psychology, behaviour change techniques, behaviour change game, behaviour change game tool.
Case study 2: Preparatory resit examination programme at the University of Dundee aims to support... more Case study 2: Preparatory resit examination programme at the University of Dundee aims to support students with resits through a structured, personalised revision programme not only to help students prepare for resit examinations but also to prepare them for success in future studies. Case study 3: Empowering the learner through enhanced engagement at Napier University aims to encourge students and to enable them to take personal ownership of their learning. Research at Anglia Ruskin University aims to develop students' capacity for meta-learning by empowering them to personalise their learning experience through designing, controlling and reflecting upon their learning and critically re-learning in new contexts. Case study 5: Personalising assessment at Oxford Brookes University aims to empower students to make responsible choices of assessment methods by encouraging them to explore their preferred learning styles and equipping them to build on their strengths and develop their weaknesses through assessment. Case study 6: Online learning materials to accommodate heterogeneity in student abilities, aptitudes and aspirations at the University of Edinburgh aims to provide students with flexible access to learning materials, which they can personalise in use to explore topics in depth or breadth depending on their current state of knowledge.
This paper discusses issues relating to the use of online discussion groups on psychology modules... more This paper discusses issues relating to the use of online discussion groups on psychology modules, drawing on the results from three studies investigating Level 1 students' use of asynchronous computer mediated communication (CMC). The first study examined the language use of large groups of students using CMC to discuss essay topics. The second study compared the online and face-to-face discourse of small groups of students evaluating a journal article, in terms of critical thinking. The third study investigated the use of CMC to support small groups of students engaged in problem based learning (PBL). The paper concludes with some recommendations for practitioners.
ion of meaning Understanding Understanding Learning as strategies/ styles/approaches Understandin... more ion of meaning Understanding Understanding Learning as strategies/ styles/approaches Understanding subject matter An interpretative process aimed at understanding reality Seeing something in a different way Seeing something in a different way Personal change Learning as an externally determined event/process Widening horizons Changing as a person Personal fulfilment Growing selfawareness A duty A duty A process not bound by time or context A process not bound by time or context Learning as a developmental process Developing social competence Social competence Learning as student activity Surface
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