The thesis deals with the image of gamers in Czech media, specifically in the most read daily newspapers. Videogames are still a rather marginal topic within the Czech society, gamers are perceived as weird and socially isolated individuals, and in the worst case they are described as addicted and aggressive. Predictions for the future say that digital games will become a regular part of our lives, but before this happens, I set myself the goal to find out how contemporary Czech media depict people who like to play videogames. This task is important because, whether we want it or not, media represents a reflection of our society and it is also an element that can influence public opinion to some extent. However, if there is a goal to educate public sphere or change the perception of the gaming community, it is necessary to find out what is the current situation among the Czech society. In the theoretical part I deal with the environment in which the media texts are created and their impact on the recipients of the given content. At the same time, I also explain to the reader how gamers really look like. The practical part examines the seven most widely read Czech newspapers Aha!, Blesk, E15, Hospodářské noviny, Lidové noviny, Mladá fronta DNES and Právo. These are the best newspapers when it comes...

L’expérience Double Chooz, située sur le site de la centrale nucléaire de Chooz dans la région des Ardennes en France, étudie la disparition des antineutrinos. Le but principal de l’expérience est de mesurer avec une grande précision l’amplitude d’oscillation sin2 2θ13 des antineutrinos émis par les deux réacteurs de la centrale de Chooz. La précision de cette mesure dépend fortement d’une connaissance précise des taux et de la forme des spectres des bruits de fond qui contaminent la sélection finale des antineutrinos en particulier dans la gamme d’énergie où l’oscillation des neutrinos est attendue. Nous avons étudié dans la présente thèse le bruit de fond d’origine cosmique dans l’expérience Double Chooz. En effet, les muons cosmiques traversant les détecteurs ou interagissant dans le voisinage immédiat sont la principale source de bruit de fond observés dans l’expérience Double Chooz. Deux types de bruits de fonds sont analysés et présentes dans cette thèse : les neutrons rapides (FN) et la double capture de neutrons (DnC). Des techniques d’identification dédiées ont été développées pour chacun de ces bruits de fond et, par conséquent, les formes spectrales et les taux associés ont été́ déterminés. Les valeurs obtenues dans le cadre de ce travail servent de paramètres d’entrée dans le fit final d’où la valeur de θ13 est extraite. La dernière mesure publiée par la collaboration Double Chooz est sin2 2θ13 = 0.119 ± 0.016. / The Double Chooz experiment is- a reactor antineutrino disappearance experiment located on the site of the Chooz nuclear power plant in the Ardennes region in France. The principal aim of the experiment is a high precision measurement of the oscillation amplitude sin2 2θ13 of the antineutrinos emitted from the two reactor cores of the Chooz power plant. The robustness and accuracy of this measurement depends strongly on a precise knowledge of the rates and spectral shapes of the backgrounds that contaminate the antineutrinos selection over the neutrino oscillation expected region. We have studied in the present thesis the muon induced background in the Double Chooz experiment. Indeed, cosmic muons crossing the detectors or interacting in the neighborhood constitute the main source of background events encountered in Double Chooz. Two distinct backgrounds analysis are presented in this thesis: fast neutrons (FN) and double capture of neutrons (DnC). Dedicated identification techniques have been developed for each of these backgrounds and, consequently, the associated spectral shapes and rates have been determined. The values obtained in this work serve as inputs in the final fit whence the θ13 value is extracted.The latest measurement released by the Double Chooz collaboration is sin2 2θ13 = 0.119 ± 0.016$.

Typified rhetorical situations are often a result of normalized ideologies within cultures; however, they also have the capability to produce new ideology. Within these discursive sites, identities are constructed among these normalized social acts. More importantly, these identities are constructed across many layers, not limited to one social act, but many that overlap and influence each other. In this paper, I focus on the identities that are constructed in marginalized spaces within sites of interacting discourse. Focusing on the rhetoric of abjection posited by Julia Kristeva, along with McKenzie Wark’s exploration of gamespace, a liminal theoretical space that encompasses the sites of analysis and ideology formation from the perspective of gamers, I analyze disruptions of normalized social practices in the gaming genre in order to implement the use of abjection as a method of understanding how sites of difference produce meaning for minoritarian subjects.

In 2012, the Entertainment Software Association announced that 47% of all game players are women. Before this statistic came out, it wasn't a surprise that girl gamers existed but the fact that this supposed 'minority' almost shared equal parts with the majority was used as a catalyst for the types of gaming environments we have today where females are faced with sexism, patriarchy, and other various forms of prejudice. This, in turn has initiated both positive and negative discourse and has perpetuated social change in the video game community. This is my response...

This work uncovers perceptions of the Czech society concerning cultural and social role of a digital entertainment (computer games and videogames) as a relatively new interactive media form. The author tries to verify validity of a presumption that the digital entertainment is an object of a cultural stigma that was formed by combination of various factors which are closely specified in the work. According to the author, present perception of the digital entertaiment in society is formed by a media panic that repeated itself regularly in the course of history. Amongst other significant determinants one can find certain stereotypical viewes, efforts of a ruling class to sustain status quo and struggle of various social groups over cultural dominance which leads to hierarchization of cultural tastes. Suggested cultural stigmatisation of the digital entertainment probably leads to a social stigmatisation of players, who submit to social pressures and often adapt their behaviour to general tastes. Essential part of the work is formed by a research based on qualitative and quantitative data collected from teachers and gymnasium (high schools) and elementary school students. The research supports a presumption that the negative view on the digital entertainment is subject to specific generational...

Gaming is an activity that many second language students engage in during their free time, however, games are for more than just playtime. The aim of this literature study is to analyse in what way MMORPGs can have a positive impact on ESL and EFL learners' confidence in using English as well as help develop socialization skills. We found relevant empirical studies by using educational databases like ERIC. A total of 9 empirical studies were included, of which 8 focused on the topic of socialization and 6 on confidence. Multiple authors in this study claim that players engage in game-play that involves social interaction, collaboration, and autonomous learning in the MMORPG context. It was concluded throughout this study that playing MMORPGs has a positive effect on players' socialization skills as well as their confidence in using English as a second language. However, few to none of these studies presented the potential risks with MMORPGs. / Självständigt arbete i fördjupningsämne

In light of the growing concern about the psychological impact of computer, console and handheld electronic games (digital games), this research explores the thoughts and thinking strategies of game players (gamers) during gameplay. It attempts to achieve this goal by means of using a form of verbal analysis based on the 'think out loud' method of Protocol Analysis. The recordings of gamers engaged in the 'think out loud' exercise during gameplay at a gaming networking session were transcribed and analyzed. These gamers participated in two different genres of games. The fist was a First-Person Shooter (FPS) and the second a Real Time Strategy (RTS). The content of the different transcripts were categorized using cognitive models and theories. From this process a nine category classification framework was developed. By dividing identified thought segments into these different categories, a quantitative frequency analysis was possible. This supplemented the overall qualitative exploration of gamers’ thoughts and thinking strategies. The results of this study indicate that different genres of games stimulate different concentrations of different types of thoughts. Overall these concentrations numerically classify gaming as an activity in terms of perception, cognition, emotion, and self immersion. It also indicated that each genre has its own unique influence and that each player is uniquely engaged. Besides providing insight into gamers’ thoughts and thinking strategies, this study also provides evidence that an adapted form of verbal analysis is suitable in exploring a visually absorbing activity such as gaming. / Dissertation (MA)--University of Pretoria, 2006. / Psychology / unrestricted

This study explores an experimental design methodology to circumvent issues with gathering behavioural data through serious games in citizen science. Public transportation research is used as a case, as it offers a complex problem for the game to solve. Four players were interviewed and observed playing a prototype of a serious game intended on gathering data on public transportation use in Gothenburg. Alongside this, a definition of different types of behaviours in games was developed to examine whether the players were playing rationally with regards to the game context (the magic circle) and the real world. The results show promise for the simplified real world mechanics utilized, to enable engaging serious game experiences. However, many issues and challenges were also observed, revolving around the players tendency to fluctuate between different types of behaviours. The implications of these challenges and the usefulness of the experimental design are discussed at the end.

玩大型多人角色扮演線上遊戲(MMORPGs)的行為在國內日漸普遍，但是許多人玩線上遊戲的現象卻經常被社會大眾和媒體報導認為是一種負面社會問題，並將玩遊戲與遊戲成癮作直接的連結。許多成癮研究也強化了「持續玩線上遊戲的行為，最終容易導致病態行為成癮的結果」之因果邏輯。但是，事實上許多玩家經常自行決定進入、持續玩，和退出一款線上遊戲，並非最終都會走向遊戲成癮的宿命。因此，本研究的主要目的即在於透過遊戲玩家的個人線上遊戲生命歷程，重新檢視遊戲「成癮」以及「玩線上遊戲便注定導致病態成癮」的邏輯。 運用深度訪談和參與觀察方法，描繪出線上遊戲玩家的長期線上遊戲生命歷程，再試圖詮釋他們離開、持續玩、退出遊戲這些投入程度的變化是受到哪些因素影響，以及在什麼脈絡之下做出的決定。本研究發現許多玩家曾經意識到自己「成癮」於玩線上遊戲，但是只是階段性的反常狀態，甚至是可以接受的一種生活方式。玩家們不只是受到線上遊戲設計的被動牽引而長時間持續投入大量心力玩遊戲，他們在玩遊戲的過程中，受到遊戲設計、玩家社群、生活脈絡和個人對於這些因素的價值判斷等多元因素的影響，持續調整和監控自己的遊戲行為和投入程度，從中協調出最能夠滿足他們的多元愉悅感。另外，當他們對於自己玩遊戲的投入程度感到疑惑時，傾向於尋求玩家社群的協助。因此，本研究認為玩線上遊戲導致病態成癮的論述須要被重新檢視，因為許多被認定為病態成癮的現象只是線上遊戲玩家生命過程中的片段現象。 / Playing massive multiplayer online role playing games (MMORPGs) has become a popular activity in Taiwan, but it has often been regarded as a social problem, linking to game addiction, by the mass media and the public. Many addiction researches have also enforced the logic that “pathological game addiction is the most likely result of continuous online gaming activity”. However, many gamers in fact often begin, continue, and quit playing an online game according to their own will, instead of ending up as a pathologic game addict. Therefore, the main purpose of this research is to re-approach game “addiction” and the logic of “online gamers are destined to be addicted” through gamers' online gaming life story. Using methods of depth interview and participant observation to depict gamers’ long-term online gaming life story, this research tries to interpret under what social context and influencing factors, do gamers change their attitude and effort to playing online games. Findings of this research tells us that many online gamers claim to have been “addicted” to online gaming some time in the past, but the “addiction” is only a certain stage in their long-term gaming life, and even regarded as a life-style by some. Online gamers do not continuously put a lot of effort to playing games just because they are attracted by the features of online game design. During the course of game play, they are persistently influenced by game design, gaming community, social context, and their own judgment of values. Also, they often self-monitor and re-adjust their gaming styles and effort, in order to meet their needs of multiple pleasures. Moreover, when gamers become confused of how they should re-adjust their gaming activities, they tend to search for assistance from the gaming community. Therefore, this research believes that the problematic logic of pathological game addiction being the final destined result of gaming should be reconsidered and understood from other perspectives, because many phenomenon currently considered pathologic addiction, may only be a short period or segment of gamers’ normal long-term online gaming life.

The significance of technology and technological devices in the modern western society is steadily expanding, and affecting how the consumers of these products interact with one another. Both through these devices, but also how they interact without them the importance of studying these forms of interaction is therefore of rising significance. This thesis explores the world of online-gaming in order to map out how the players use, and are affected by the virtual aspects of the platform they use to create and reproduce their social bonds with one another. By analysing the relationship between the virtual and the actual it is possible to shed light on the potentials as well as the limits of online communication. The thesis purpose is to add to a deeper understanding within the anthropological discipline for interpersonal interaction within the frames of virtual spaces. The research has been conducted through a qualitative ethnographic field study with a guild of players who interact through the game World of Warcraft. This thesis will show that there is a strong interaction between the virtual worlds and the actual world. Thus it is possible for events that occurred in either space to affect the player.