PROJECT ACRONYM
- PLAYPSY
PROJECT TYPE
- VII Programa de proyectos de investigación y retención del talento UEMC- Diputación de Valladolid
PROJECT REFERENCE
- L1_VII_001
DURATION
- 12-Jan-2025 – 30-Oct-2026
CONTACT
- Azael Herrero
CONTACT EMAIL
Description
PLAYPSY is a project focused on the relationship between board games, play habits, and player psychology. Its main aim is to better understand how people engage with games by analyzing their preferences, motivations, frequency of play, social dynamics, and overall gaming behavior. Through the design and validation of a structured survey, the project seeks to identify different player profiles and classify participants into meaningful typologies, ranging from occasional players to more highly involved and specialized gamer types.
Beyond simple classification, PLAYPSY aims to generate useful knowledge about how gaming habits are connected to personal, social, and educational variables. By studying these patterns, the project hopes to provide a stronger basis for future research and for the practical use of board games in educational, social, and community contexts. In this way, PLAYPSY positions games not only as entertainment, but also as a valuable tool for understanding people, promoting interaction, and supporting learning and personal development.
Results
Herrero, A. J., Aldavero, C., Lahuerta, A., & Martínez-Sinovas, R. (2026). Sex-based differences in recreational modern board gaming in Spain: Implications for board game-based learning. International Journal of Game-Based Learning, 16(1), 1–32. https://doi.org/10.4018/IJGBL.422113
Herrero, A. J., Martínez-Sinovas, R., Aldavero, C., Lahuerta, A., & Herrero-Martín, M. (2026). Modern board gaming as analogue leisure across age cohorts: Hobby engagement and player typologies in a large Spanish survey. Manuscript under review in Leisure Studies.
Herrero, A. J., Herrero-Martín, M., & Martínez-Sinovas, R. (2026). Traditional, mass-market, and modern hobby games in contemporary leisure: Player repertoires and pathways into board gaming in Spain. Manuscript under review in Board Game Studies Journal.
