The thesis deals with the theme of modern board games and the interactions of a small social group. The thesis is divided into two parts, theoretical and empirical. The theoretical part provides an introduction to the theory of play as such with a more detailed understanding of two play concepts. I also deal with the definition of board games and the differences between classical and modern board games. I devote more space to the modern board games with emphasis on three aspects, namely the social dimension of the play, the existence of the board as a meaningful game space and specific game material. The theory also includes the introduction of a method Interaction Process Analysis of F. Bales and a selected typology of group roles that are both used in the empirical part of the thesis. In the practical part is presented a research of qualitative methodology consisting of observation of three game groups during the part of a concrete modern board game (Dead of Winter). An audio record was taken from each observed game. The collected data was then encoded and processed according to the method of the Interaction Process Analysis and subjected to further analysis. The output of the work is mainly the characteristics of player interactions, the description of their group roles as well as the so-called...

The aim of the work was to present the history of board games from a historical- sociological perspective. The theoretical section described the history of board game development, taking into account their role in society. Subsequently, the results of qualitative research conducted among members of the board players community in the Czech Republic were interpreted in practical part. These were complemented by the results of the questionnaire investigation. This gave a comprehensive view of the evolution and transformation in the board player community, as well as the board game itself. So the work presented not only a thousand-year history of board games, but also focused on contemporary board games and their players.

[pt] O mercado de jogos de tabuleiro modernos vem crescendo de forma exponencial nos últimos cinco anos. No Brasil, empresas e consumidores desse segmento exploram diversas oportunidades que surgem com a oferta de mais de quatrocentos novos títulos ao ano, novos locais para jogar e novas formas de informação, acesso e aquisição dos jogos. Neste contexto, os significados do consumo dos jogos de tabuleiro modernos se transformam e mostram-se, muitas vezes, fortes e presentes na vida dos jogadores, com influência nas identidades dos consumidores das mais diversas maneiras. Estudos sobre jogos de tabuleiro modernos na área de consumo são muito escassos, principalmente no Brasil, e circunscritos a poucas áreas. Dessa forma, esta pesquisa tem como objetivo explorar os significados de consumo dos jogos de tabuleiro e suas possíveis implicações identitárias, por meio de entrevistas com vinte e cinco consumidores altamente envolvidos com esse objeto, e utilizando a semiótica francesa como linha teóricometodológica e analítica. Os resultados da investigação apontam a socialização mediada pelos jogos de tabuleiro modernos como um dos principais significados do consumo do objeto estudado, assim como uma das principais implicações identitárias sobre os consumidores. Destacam-se, também, as narrativas de consumidores acerca da relação sensível entre os sujeitos e o objeto-jogo e suas coleções. O estudo dos significados do consumo e das questões identitárias revelaram que a cultura nerd se faz muito presente neste universo, apesar de não se tratar de um mercado restrito a essa subcultura de consumo. / [en] The market of modern board games has been growing exponentially over the past five years. In Brazil, companies and consumers in this segment exploit several opportunities that arise with the offer of more than four hundred new titles per year, new places to play and new forms of information, access and acquisition of these games. In this context, the consumption meanings of modern board games change and are often shown to be strong and present in the lives of players, influencing the identities of consumers in the most diverse ways. Studies about modern board games in the consumption area are very scarce, mainly in Brazil, and limited to a few areas. Thus, this research aims to explore the meanings of consumption of board games and their possible identity implications, through interviews with twenty-five consumers highly involved with this object, and using french semiotics as a theoretical-methodological and analytical line. The research results point to the socialization mediated by modern board games as one of the main consumption meaning of the studied object, as well as one of the main identity implications for consumers. Also highlighted are the consumer narratives about the sensitive relationship between the players and the game-object and its collections. The study of the consumption meanings and identity issues revealed that nerdy culture is very present in this universe, although it is not a market restricted to this consumer subculture.