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Do Games Mean Well?

An Ethnographic Study of a College Game Room and its Impact on Students

William Burgos

Professor Chrysafi

English 201.32

15 April 2019

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Introduction:

The purpose of this ethnographic study is to examine how visiting a college game room

affects one’s morale and overall mental well-being. As a college student myself, I know how

stressful college can get within a mere ten minutes. You can be ecstatic one minute, walking

around on campus with a big smile; to walking into a class, feeling qualm about an upcoming

assignment or test. Spending time in an open, friendly environment with social capabilities is one

way to combat the negative emotions college students may face. The York College website talks

about a room whose goal is to let students have such an environment, “The purpose of the York

College Student Activities Game Room is to provide an area with various resources that a

student can come and relax, free of the sometimes stressful academic campus environment.

(York College/CUNY)” Based on the York College website’s description of their game room, it

can be said that a game room is an area on campus that allows students to relax, either alone or

with friends. An area free from stress should allow a student’s mood, confidence, and

socialization skills to thrive. What exactly in the game room makes this possible?

From what I have seen at John Jay and have heard from various friends, a game room on

a college campus is an area designated for social engagements. This room usually contains

various activities for students to indulge in, such as billiards or ping pong. There can also be one

or more TV’s set up so that students can bring electronic equipment from home such as a PC,

Xbox One, or PS4 to use at school. With such flexibility and utility, it seems that a game room is

an ideal place for students to interact with others and destress from the college experience.

In my first semester of college, I heard about the game room at John Jay but never paid

much mind to it. Some of the people I met on campus said they visited it frequently to play

games such as Super Smash Bros for the Wii U and that is all I really knew about the game

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room. Then, one day I decided to go check out the game room myself with a friend I had made in

precalculus. At first, I thought, “Wow, this is going to be pretty lame but at least it’ll kill time

before class.” I couldn’t have been more wrong. Immediately as we entered, I felt an aura that

was different from the rest of campus. It was not quiet with everyone keeping to themselves.

Rather, it was filled with people making jokes and playing video games. My friend and I quickly

found ourselves participating in this group and befriending those in the room. We now visit the

room daily, and, every time we enter, all the issues with class or home just fade to black. When

asked to conduct an ethnographic study, I decided that I wanted to see if the game room had

impacted others the same way it has impacted myself. Are people able to reduce their stress by

visiting the game room? How does it affect their daily well-being and overall morale? These are

questions that remained dormant in my mind because I never had a reason to pursue them until

now.

Assumptions and Early Hypothesis:

The game room can benefit many people for a variety of reasons. In my case, it was for

the social benefits. Within the first week of attending the game room, I had made several friends

to talk with both during school hours and afterwards as well. In the article “The Importance of

Being Social in College”, the author, Anthony Geremia says that having social interactions

similar to those that I have found myself in can enhance one’s learning experience. According to

Geremia, post-secondary education can be the best way to study for an exam. Teaching others,

such as the friends you have made in college, can reinforce what you already know. While

teaching, the feedback they give can provide a new perspective that you may learn more from. It

is a two-way exchange (Geremia). This quote depicts a study habit that many college students

take advantage of, studying with friends. Studying with friends is not just a tool for remembering

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answers for a test, it also aids in developing a student’s organization and presentation skills.

Students can learn to organize their own ideas and express them around the friends they have

chosen to study with. Over time, their confidence will increase, and these skills would be applied

to the classroom resulting in an increase in student participation. Bonds forged in the game room

are one way students may accomplish such a feat. Based on this, I expect to find that students in

the game room will help each other grow as individuals for the bonds that they make will allow

them to draw out their potential.

Now although the game room may not explicitly help students learn or study, there is a

study by Alexander Astin that suggests time on campus can encourage a student’s learning

experience. In “Student Involvement: A Developmental Theory for Higher Education,”

Alexander Astin proposed that students are more motivated academically as they increase their

involvement with the academic and social aspects in college life. Students who participate in

student organizations spend a considerable amount of time on campus and interact with students

and faculty outside of the classroom end up spending an exceeding amount of time studying.

They end up spending a significant amount of effort on their work because they are emotionally

and physically connected with the school (Astin 301). I assume that students will use the social

bonds created at the game room to help improve their academic career through actions such as

studying. As Astin suggests, students would become invested in their studies the more time they

are in college. Geremia added to this earlier by saying social groups not only increase study

habits but can aid in learning too (Geremia). I have commonly found myself in positions where I

am updating eportfolios or proofreading work with another student who visits the game room.

We talk and end up learning more about what the work we are doing and how it can relate to or

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influence us. This may not be the case for everyone. However, I believe there are others who do

the same activities with their friends.

As the game room is an open social space, I also assume that a person’s well-being will

improve. Bill Hettler’s, “Wellness Promotion on a University Campus” discusses how a

student’s identity development is based on their wellness. There are six dimensions to a student’s

life that affects their wellness: physical, intellectual, social/emotional, spiritual, environmental,

and occupational. The social dimension includes healthy friendships, relationships, and social

interactions which will provide students with meaningful connections and a sense of belonging.

When these areas reach a state of equilibrium, a person’s identity will grow (Hettler 94). As I

look back at my first semester, I realize that I had experienced this to an extent. At the start of the

semester, when I did not know anyone, I felt like I did not belong at John Jay. Even though I was

doing well in school, I understood little on how to fit into the college crowd like everyone else

appeared to be doing. Then, later in the semester, as I visited the game room more frequently, I

found the sense of belonging that I was originally missing. The game room had become a home

away from home where I could always be and have a good time and smile with friends. In saying

this, I believe that I will find evidence that proves that the game room can provide healthy social

aspects which will not only raise a student’s well-being, but also develop their identity and

understanding as a person as well.

The three concepts that I have mentioned support my assumption that a college’s game

room can benefit a student in multiple ways. With this in mind, I expect that in my own research,

I will find that the social aspects this room provides should improve a person’s well-being,

individuality, and their work ethic. There is one other benefit to the game room that not

everybody will notice, the socialization itself. College is the place for students to practice and

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TheleftsideentrancetotheJohnJayGameRoomatHoundSquare

learn new skills. Socialization is a skill that students can develop throughout their college career

for students are in a new environment with a new group of people (Geremia). At the start of

college, students may find it hard to be able to socialize with others. Students who have visited

the game room frequently may find it easier to socialize with not only those in the room, but with

other students in class and on campus. Based on Geremia’s statement, I predict that the game

room will give students an environment to be able to practice these skills which later benefits

them in their future careers. This will allow students to immerse themselves in a college

experience while also raising their potential.

Methodology:

Prior to conducting my study, I decided on the methods that I

would use which included participant observation and field notes. I sat

in the middle of the John Jay game room for two and a half hours on

Thursday, April 11th, 2019 before my class at 3:05 PM. I was warmly

welcomed into the room by the friends I have made over the last few

months. As frequent member of the game room, I dissociated from

activities for the time of my study so that I could perceive the room with a

fresh set of eyes. This also gave me the ability to pay attention to as many

details as possible during my study such as who entered the game room, what they were doing in

the game room, and the expressions on their face while participating in the activities available.

As I made observations, I jotted everything I saw down into a little brown journal. These were

my field notes that I later used to analyze what I saw and draw conclusions.

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After an hour and a half of observing, I went to go get food at the JJay Café with my

friend Jay Mejia. This time gave me an opportunity to talk about the game room and his

reflection of his time spent in it. This conversation became another important step for the

methodology of this study, an informal interview. This interview provides personal details that

would support my forementioned hypotheses or provide reasons as to why they are wrong.

Finally, to display what was mentioned in the interview and my field notes, I used visual

ethnography. Visual ethnography is the use of various forms of media such as photography and

film to capture and showcase everyday life. In this study, I took photographs of the John Jay

game room and what occurred inside of it. These photographs would support the details that I

mention later in this paper as well as aid the reader in drawing connections between what I have

seen throughout my observation and the words I use in this paper to describe them. Although it

may seem as a rather minuscule idea, visual ethnography is actually a potent tool that will entice

readers to think and visualize for themselves. They will be indulged with not only a description,

but a photo to remember it by.

Data Analysis:

After my English class on

Thursday, April 11th, 2019, I went to

the John Jay Game Room to conduct

my study. As I entered the room, the

lights were turned off. My eyes took

a brief moment to adjust to the dark

surrounding that I became familiar with over time. Along with the mild darkness, there was loud

rap music playing from the air hockey table. Students were sitting on the table enjoying their

ThePingPongTableatJohnJayaccompaniedbymanystudentssurroundingthepooltablesoutsideoftheroom.

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music while watching their friends play ping pong. I took a few seconds to glance around the

room. I saw three groups of people each surrounding a television. To my left, there was my

friend Jay setting up his PS4 with another member in the game room. On the television next to

him, there was another TV surrounded by two couches. Five people were on those couches all

watching the Super Smash Bros match being played. On the other side of the room, I saw my

friend Mike and some of his friends hooking up a Nintendo Switch to yet another TV in the

game room. While in a daze, suddenly, everyone was smiling saying,” Hi!” and began to

converse with me. The cheerful aura I felt seeped into my skin and brought a smile to my face

while as I began to search for a seat.

To best see the game room and hear what everyone was saying, I sat in a spot on the

couch that was close to the center of the room. It was easy to have a 360-degree view of

everything that went on as well as hear the various conversations being held nearby. Within mere

minutes, I saw just how social the game room could be. During the time that I sat down and

began taking notes, a group of students entered and looked at the other students sitting on the

couches. These students asked those sitting if they wanted to get food or if they wanted anything

to be bought for them. Although those sitting declined the offer, they said their thanks and had a

conversation asking about not only what food they were going to get, but if they wanted to play a

game when they came back. After the students left to get food, those on the couch continued

playing.

The more time I spent in the game room, I felt a strong sense of unity being created.

Random groups of students came in, sat down, and were immediately welcomed. Whether it was

starting up a game on a TV not being used or being asked if someone wanted to join a game,

everyone in the game room was constantly included in an activity or conversation. This proved

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my hypotheses that the game

room provides healthy social

aspects that can raise a

student’s well-being and is an

environment where students

can practice their socialization

skills. By constantly including

everyone, the game room gives those who attend a feeling of belonging. That they can go to the

game room at any time and they will be valued as a person and not be left out to sit alone in

silence. Everyone tries their best to make the game room feel welcoming and supportive. In

doing so, it also creates an open space where students can come and socialize with others. The

feeling of being heard and valued increases one’s confidence which makes it easier to socialize

in not only the game room, but also in class and throughout campus as well.

While I watched the students in the game room play Super Smash Bros, I noticed that

they did not trash talk the losers but instead offered advice on how they could improve and had a

good laugh with each other. This continued to support my theory of the game room providing

healthy social aspects. As Bill Hettler suggested, social interaction will provide students with

meaningful connections thus resulting with a sense of belonging (Hettler 94). Students playing

the game had meaningful interactions which gave the room life. Laughter filled the air as

friendships were being made. So far, on the outside, the game room has looked like a place that

supported my assumptions. There were strong bonds being formed that seemed to improve the

moods of students in the game room as they stayed over longer periods of time. However,

participant observation was not enough to see the full impact the game room had on a student or

JohnJaystudentssittinginfrontofaTVplayingvideogamesandhavingagoodtime.

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if any of my assumptions were correct. I needed to talk to someone about their own experience

and how they were affected; so, I asked my friend Jay Mejia to partake in an interview.

While on break to get food, I asked Jay to participate in an informal interview that would

help guide me in understanding the impact of the game room on a person. “I spend about four to

five hours in the game room,” said Jay Mejia at the start of our interview. When asked about how

the game room has affected him as a person Jay replied, “It has made me a lot happier because

after going to college, I made a lot more friends and it generally makes my day a lot more fun.”

His response reflected on my research question for it demonstrated that the game room has

assisted in raising the level of his well-being. Jay also stated how the game room had allowed the

morale of others to prosper. He said, “I think that if someone came in there [the game room] and

they are a lot more quiet. I think being in the game room will help them interact with people. I

think that people in the game room go out of their way sometimes to talk to people.” Jay’s

response reveals the true nature of the game room. As my theories suggested, it is a place that

increases the socialization of students and develops their identity throughout their college

experience.

As Jay further discussed how the game room has positively affect him and others, Jay

also talked about a downside he has faced. “There are times where I go to the game room a little

too much and get home late. It makes doing my work a little harder.” Although it may not seem

like such a big deal, if gone unmonitored, it could turn into one. Exposure to the game room over

long periods of time to the point it affects your life in school and your life outside of school

could be labeled as an addiction. This made me realize that if students attend the game room to

often and become addicted, then there could be adverse effects such as low grades and

participation. I believe this is why Bill Hettler mentioned there are six dimensions to a student’s

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life that affects their growth. These dimensions must be in a state of equilibrium to promote

development (Hettler 94). If one dimension is absurdly strong, then another dimension will be

weak. In this case, if a person’s social skills are being dramatically increased by their time and

effort in the game room, then something like their physical or intellectual wellness may be

lacking. Jay may not have had an addiction; however, it is possible that some students in the

game room have either gone or are going through such a phase.

After this train of thought about grades, I asked Jay if he had ever studied with someone

in the game room. He replied, “I studied with a few people from the game room, not very often

though. It helps me focus on my work a little more.” I was surprised by Jay’s response. While it

does support the idea that students use their social bonds to enhance their academic career, it

does not appear to happen as frequently as I thought. This disproved what Astin’s article had

purposed. Even though students such as Jay have been spending long durations of times in the

game room, it does not appear to have any effect on the investment of time or work students put

into their academics as Astin suggested (Astin 301). The connection between student and school

appears to have little difference in how academically motivated a student is in this case. After

our meal, Jay and I headed back to the game room. I spent the remaining time observing the

room, however, there were no notable changes. At 3:00 P.M. I concluded my study and stepped

into my DRA225 class with new realizations and feelings of the game room that I had not

encountered before.

Conclusion:

The findings of this project shed a new light on how I view the game room. I originally

saw it as a friendly environment that had a positive effect on those who visited; however, I may

have been biased towards my own experience. Going back to my research question, there are

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both positive and negative ways that a game room can affect a person’s morale and mental well-

being. Not all of my assumptions were correct, even with the data to support them; they fell short

in reality. I was never able to determine if the students in the game room helped each other grow

as individuals. I felt dismayed because even though I looked, there was not enough evidence to

support the theory. There was also the surprise finding on how harmful the game room could be

to one’s college career. As Jay Mejia said,” There are times where I go to the game room a little

too much and get home late. It makes doing my work a little harder”. This can infer that if not

used in moderation, a game room can become a distraction that will affect one’s school work and

work ethic.

Although there was a negative impact of the game room, the participant observation and

visual ethnography that I used in this study also highlighted many positive perspectives of the

game room. The free environment allows one’s social skills and confidence as a person to thrive.

The informal interview with Jay reinforced this theory by telling his story and his perceptions of

the game room. He believed that a person’s well-being and morale can be improved by not just

the environment, but because of the people in the game room as well. Now even though these

assumptions were correct, there are various areas of this study that could be improved upon to

enhance the understanding of this topic. First, a larger sample size of interviews could be used. I

only used one person which is not an accurate representation of the number of students who go

to the game room daily. More interviews would create a larger sample size allowing for more

data on the topic. There can also be more studies to test the actual benefits of a game room from

the perspective of students and faculty. While researching this topic, there was very little

information on the impact of a game room on students. This made making assumptions harder,

for I had to expand the horizons of my study to acquire stronger evidence. Furthermore, I believe

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that looking at the same location over longer periods of time could provide different results. I

observed the game room for two hours in a single day. Had I spent more days visiting the game

room for this study jotting down field notes, then there might have been different conclusions

drawn. For example, the sense of unity may have only been for that one day which would not

accurately describe the game room. There is also the case of other colleges. Not all colleges have

the same game room layout or availability. An interesting study would be to visit various CUNY

game rooms and perform a similar study to see the student’s perspectives of their game rooms.

All of these areas put together may have brought a completely different study with new

approaches and results.

For now, this ethnographic study touches the surface of what the game room is and what

goes on in it. The York College website says, “The purpose of the York College Student

Activities Game Room is to provide an area with various resources that a student can come and

relax, free of the sometimes stressful academic campus environment (York College/CUNY).”

This may not be from the John Jay website; however, I believe it ties together the spirit and the

purpose of the John Jay game room. The game room is small room on campus, but it serves a big

purpose.

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Bibliography

Astin, Alexander. “Student Involvement: A Developmental Theory for Higher Education.” Journal of College Student Personnel, vol. 25, 1984, pp. 297-308.

Geremia, Anthony. “The Importance of Being Social in College.” The Importance of Being Social in College, 11 Nov. 2014, www.centennialcollege.ca/centennial-college-blog/2014/november/12/the-importance-of-being-social-in-college/.

“Game Room.” York College / CUNY, 28 Feb. 2018, www.york.cuny.edu/student-development/student-activities/game-room.

Hettler, Bill. “Wellness Promotion on a University Campus.” Family & Community Health, vol. 3, no. 1, 1980, pp. 77-95.