Index

Designing a text-based adventure game to train an AI in reading handwriting

In collaboration with STABILO International GmbH, we developed a text-based adventure for the STABILO DigiPen. STABILO Dungeon is a gamified crowdsourcing approach that aims to engage people in writing words with the IoT device Digipen, a classic ballpoint pen equipped with sensors to detect movement and pressure of a person’s handwriting. The aim of this project is to collect handwriting data for further developing the Digipen’s machine learning algorithms.

The core game mechanism of STABILO Dungeon is primarily driven by a narrative: At predefined points in the game, the player controlling the protagonist can decide the story’s progression by writing down an actionable activity on standard paper. The possible activities are a set of pre-defined actions in the game, which makes it easy for the DigiPen to recognise the handwritten word and thus to further train the handwriting recognition.

While the benefits and potential of gamification have been consistently demonstrated in various research, it is crucial to acknowledge that gamification approaches are not always effective and vary in their success, possibly because standard gamification concepts such as one-size-fits-all (OSFA) approaches commonly lack the consideration of the diversity of users. However, with adaptive gamification, this issue can be addressed by adapting the system to the individual user’s preferences.

Between January and May 2022, the experiment was presented on two consecutive weekends at JOSEPHS, an open-innovation laboratory in the city-centre of Nuremberg, as well as at the “Long Night of the Sciences” in Nuremberg. In total, the study resulted in a collection of 8,563 crowdsourced handwritten words. 135 participants completed the experiment by playing the game as well as filling out two questionnaires which measured the players’ enjoyment and intention for future play, amongst others.

The public-service radio and television broadcaster Bayerischer Rundfunk released a short video in German showcasing the experiment as well as the DigiPen as part of the Frankenschau at 28.02.2022.

For more details, see: https://www.br.de/mediathek/video/erste-testlaeufe-intelligenter-stift-digitalisiert-handschrift-av:621d14290b569700085cde93

We thank Jens Barth, Tim Hamann and Peter Kaempf of STABILO International GmbH for the exciting collaboration.

The study was presented as a conference paper at the Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences 2023  in January 2023. Please see the paper for full details:

Weber, M., Riar, M., & Morschheuser, B. (2023). Is adaptive gamification just a theoretical fairytale? An experiment in a text-based adventure game for data crowdsourcing. In Proceedings of the 56th Annual Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences (HICSS), Maui, HI, USA, pp. 1126-1136. DOI: https://doi.org/10125/102768

CUBEness

Challenge: In recent years, exploring space has become a trending topic again. Various private organizations such as SpaceX, Blue Origin, or Virgin Galactic and government organizations from the USA, China, India, Europe, or Russia compete for supremacy in space. Besides the exploration of new dimensions, this trend paths the way for innovations that will also change our life on earth. For example, an increasing number of satellites orbiting our earth, offer new possibilities for earth observation and high-speed internet anywhere on earth. This offers new challenges and opportunities, which can be tackled with approaches from game design and gamification. Thus, the task of this semester’s course on Designing Gamified Systems was to:

Design an innovative game or gamification approach in which gaming, space technology and mobility meets in order to either A) improving life on earth or B) improving life in space.

Date: Winter semester 2021

Lecture: Designing Gamified Systems

Result: 

CUBEness

Team: Heschu Qarani, Jonathan Stief, Sherwet Galal, Cem Karatasan, Gerrit Sußner

Abstract:

The interest in space is constantly increasing: From space agencies planning longer projects, such as NASAs’ Artemis mission, to private companies such as SpaceX planning to put humans on Mars. Overall, the private sector of space tourism is projected to reach a total of US$1.7 Billion by 2027. The market will expand much further in the future, with long-term missions becoming increasingly frequent.
Yet these long-term missions pose significant strains on both the human body and the mind. First among them is the deterioration of muscles, muscle atrophy, and the cardiovascular system through microgravity. These effects are so severe that even short missions (< 30 days) can cause a muscle volume loss of 5.5 to 15.9 percent. In order to combat these effects, most space agencies employ in-flight exercises of about 2.5 hours six days a week. Secondly, space missions represent the “perfect boring situation” and can invoke mental health issues.
Our VR solution addresses both aspects equally, as it gamifies the required exercise to avoid physical consequences, as well as challenge the players mentally and provides opportunities for experiencing social relatedness. For this, it uses both state-of-the-art VR equipment, as well as a Teslasuit, to not only make the experience feel even more immersive through haptic feedback, as well as the possibility to enhance training effects. The main game consists of resource collection during the exercise and a base-building type game in the phases between workouts. Both take place in VR.
In order to overcome the dullness of the monotonous environment, the game features a story putting the players in a scenario in 2075, where Mars has been colonized, and it is now their shared mission to defend and extend the colony. However, players need to collect resources through exercise to repair and build further modules, which is conducted within the VR game.
In the story mode, they are guided through their exercise by story-related messages, collecting resources while traversing the base and the landscapes of Mars. As voluntariness represents an important point in the acceptance of gamified approaches, however, players also have the option to avoid the story. While exercising, they collect resources by swiping them to the side with their controller. From the collected resources they then have the possibility to build three different types of buildings: (1) shelter domes, which set the defense for the whole colony, (2) windmills, which produce electricity for the colony, (3) greenhouses, which produce oxygen. To increase complexity, create fun, and challenge players mentally, the electricity and oxygen stats must match the shelter, or the colony will be dysfunctional, and the defense will receive a debuff. Players will have to ready their bases for increasingly difficult challenges, such as further alien attacks, sand storms, and similar difficulties that life on Mars would bring. This aims to create a long-time engagement in the player, relying on the immersion and social interaction between the crewmates of the space mission to defend their shared colony.

We use a Teslasuit, a smart textile two-piece full bodysuit, to make the experience immersive and interactive. The suit provides haptic feedback, captures motion and biometric functions. Further, a full-body haptic feedback system is built into the suit with 80 electrostimulation channels, which could be used to provide instant feedback on the players’ performance within the game. It can be functionalized in response to motion capture comparison at any time. No additional equipment will be need. The approach may be used with existing training equipment in space stations such as the ISS.

Astronaut Mark Vande Hei Expedition 53 Flight Engineer exercises on the COLBERT (Combined Operational Load Bearing External Resistance Treadmill) in the Tranquility module – Photo by NASA

 

reHAND

Challenge: The use of digital technologies in rehabilitation processes is constantly increasing. In particular, studies show the advantages of telemedical assistance systems in rehabilitation and aftercare. Such cyber rehabilitation can support patients individually and at home. The aim of the project is to develop an gamified solution for assisting and motivating patients in hand rehabilitation.

Automate rehabilitation procedures with gameful simulations and make it accessible (at home)

 

Date: Winter semester 2021/2022

Lecture: Exergames

Result: 

reHAND − Cyber Rehabilitation for hand injuries

Team: D. Braun, E. Alekseenko, V. Rincon, A. Patoary

Abstract: The human hands have a complex structure. Hand injuries, therefore, have a significant negative impact on multiple life aspects. This project presents a Virtual Reality (VR) Exergame to help medical practitioners receive information on improvement rates and make exercising more attractive to patients. The game has been developed in Unity 3D game engine for the HTC VIVE Focus 3. The reHAND system performs an error calculation of the user’s hand movements and then provides feedback on the accuracy with which a user can perform an exercise. While playing, a user should protect their garden from the angry jealous neighbor, who throws trash in it. Accordingly, the patient performs certain hand movements to break thrown objects. Further, reHAND covers such motivational affordances as points (intrinsic game score), levels, and storytelling.

GitLab Repository: https://gitos.rrze.fau.de/hex-teaching-2021/exergames/exergames-group-3

Designing Gamified Systems (MA)

Seats are limited. Register now via StudOn!

Leaderboard
CC photo by Element5 Digital on Unsplash https://unsplash.com/photos/LTyDj7u_TU4

Driven by the rising popularity of digital games, technology, business and society are increasingly influenced and penetrated by games and trends of the gaming industry. One of the probably most important phenomena of this multi-faceted development is “gamification”, which refers to the use of design principles and features from games in the design of information systems, processes, and services.

Gamification’s popularity stems from the notion that games are a pinnacle form of hedonic information systems and thus are particularly effective in invoking intrinsic motivation and experiences such as autonomy, mastery, flow, immersion, relatedness and overall enjoyment. Across industries, marketers, designers and developers are thus using gamification as a design approach when engineering digital products and services with the purpose of inducing gameful experiences, influencing human motivation and even change behavior in various contexts.

This course

  • teaches the key concepts, design patterns, and approaches of motivational, hedonic (i.e. games and video games), social and gamified information systems.
  • offers deep insights into advanced concepts and theoretical foundations of game design, motivational psychology, and information system design.
  • introduces methods and frameworks for designing gamified systems and managing gamification projects.
  • discusses latest research findings and the potential impact of gamification on society, economy and everyday life.

Course Overview

Capstone Project

The course is complemented with a practical design project, where students in a team select and apply design methods & techniques in order to create a prototype of a gamified / hedonic information system. Within this project, the students can apply knowledge and skills acquired in this lecture and their studies in a challenging context.

EELISA

This course is offered as part of the European Engineering Learning Innovation and Science Alliance (EELISA – https://eelisa.eu). The EELISA cooperation will give the lecture an even more international setting and allow FAU students to collaborate in their projects with interdisciplinary students from all over Europe.

Learning Objectives and Skills

The students gain knowledge in understanding the underlying design principles of gamified and hedonic information systems and can analyze and discuss such systems. The students learn state-of-the-art methods, techniques, and tools for successfully conducting gamification projects and can select and apply them. The students can train their creativity, their prototyping skills as well as improve their collaboration and presentation skills.

Tutorials

The sessions are accompanied by tutorials, where students can learn the basics of developing games in Unity3D, as well as discuss current challenges in the implementation of their projects.

Prerequisites

Profound English skills are required. Further, creativity, experience in software design, user experience, prototyping, and software engineering are helpful. All participating students should be motivated to work in an international and interdisciplinary group on a challenging topic.

Lecturers

Prof. Dr. Benedikt Morschheuser

Tutors

Sandra Birnstiel (Unity3D and programming support)

Lisa Nguyen (Advice on psychological theories and study design)

Partners and guest lecturers in summer semester 2023:

Breathment (Baturay Yalvac, COO)
University Hospital Erlangen (Sandra Jeleazcov, CEO SFB1181)
Gamification Group, Tampere, Finland
Georgina Guillén-Hanson – Researcher on Gamifying Sustainable Consumption – Gamification Group Finland
Daniel Fernández Galeote  – Game Designer and Researcher on Gamifying Sustainable Consumption – Gamification Group Finland
Dr. Velvet Spors – Researcher on Gamification of Mental Health

Course details

Lecture + Capstone Project, 4 SWS, ECTS-Credits: 5

Dates

Wednesday, 09:45-13:00, LG 4.156

Module compatibility

WF IIS-MA 1 (ECTS-Credits: 5)
WF IIS-MA 2 (ECTS-Credits: 5)
WF IIS-MA 3 (ECTS-Credits: 5)
WF IIS-MA 4 (ECTS-Credits: 5)
WF WING-MA ab 1 (ECTS-Credits: 5)
WF ICT-MA ab 1 (ECTS-Credits: 5)
WF EEI-MA ab 1 (ECTS-Credits: 5)

ECTS

Credits: 5

Registration

Starts on 25. Februar 2023, 14:00 via StudOn.

Additional information

More details on course updates, materials, technical requirements, and other information will be announced in StudOn.

Keywords: Gamification, Interactive Information Systems, HCI, Customer Engagement, Social Computing, Hedonic Systems, Games

 

Inspiration of previous semesters

Summer semester 2022

Capstone project topic:
Design and investigate a novel digital gamification solution for your favorite team sports in order to increase the athlete’s training experience and the social dynamics within teams. 

Focus:
Gamification, team sports, collaboration, training, augmented reality, health

Partners and guest lecturers:
Burkhard Dümler – Director Program & Projects IT Innovation, adidas AG
Georgina Guillén-Hanson – Researcher on Gamifying Sustainable Consumption – Gamification Group Finland
Daniel Fernández Galeote  – Game Designer and Researcher on Gamifying Sustainable Consumption – Gamification Group Finland

Winter semester 2021/2022

Capstone project topic:
Design of an innovative game or gamification approach at the intersection of gaming, mobility and space technology, which improve life on earth or travel in space. 

Focus:
Gamification, crowdsourcing, satellite techonology, mobility, augmented reality

Event:
Billionaires start space tourism

Guest lecturers:
Alexander Satanowsky – Head of in-Car Gaming – Mercedes-Benz AG
Georgina Guillén-Hanson – Researcher on Gamifying Sustainable Consumption – Gamification Group Finland
Daniel Fernández Galeote  – Game Designer and Researcher on Gamifying Sustainable Consumption – Gamification Group Finland
Dr. Michael Reinhardt – Head of OpenIT Studio – Siemens Healthineers
Nicolas Butterwegge – IT Strategy Manager – Siemens Healthineers

Summer semester 2021
Capstone project challenge:
Design of an innovative game or gamification approach in which sports, gaming, and mobility meet as part of an unforgettable mixed-reality experience for potential visitors of the 2022 Olympic Asian Games in China, Hangzhou.

Focus:
eSports, sports, augmented reality, mobility, gamification

Event:
Asian games announced to have eSports as official discipline

Guest lecturers:
Alexander Satanowsky – Head of in-Car Gaming – Mercedes-Benz AG
Georgina Guillén-Hanson – Researcher on Gamifying Sustainable Consumption – Gamification Group Finland
Daniel Fernández Galeote  – Game Designer and Researcher on Gamifying Sustainable Consumption – Gamification Group Finland

Publications

Peer-reviewed publications

2023

2022

2021

2020

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

2014

2013

Patents

Open positions

Are you interested in conducting research in the field of gamification, games, digital customer experience, eCommerce, crowdsourcing, AR/VR, Metaverse, eSports, Human-Computer Interaction, new media …?

Please take a look at our job offers or send us an unsolicited application:

Researchers

Doctoral researcher / Postdoctoral research fellow privacy in the metaverse

We are looking for a postdoctoral researcher or doctoral researcher to carry out research in the area of privacy in the ‘metaverse’. The position focuses on investigating privacy-relevant design aspects of 3D worlds, metaverse platforms and services, and on developing design knowledge to support privacy-friendly user interfaces. The opportunity to pursue a PhD in research is available and supported.

The research is part of a consortium project that aims to enable citizens to engage in an informed discourse about the opportunities and risks of using metaverse platforms on their privacy, self-determination, and data protection. It also aims to develop knowledge, design principles, and metrics for developers and companies to design privacy-protective metaverse content, and to explore and test methods for incorporating user perspectives in the development and design of virtual three-dimensional (3D) experiences.

The need for action in this area is massive, as there are already millions of users on platforms such as Roblox, Fortnite Creative, or Minecraft who create virtual 3D worlds, and more and more companies are deciding to develop and provide digital content on such platforms. So far, however, there are only insufficient guidelines for content creators, developers and companies on data protection and the protection of personal rights.

In this context, our gamification research group at the Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg wants to investigate existing metaverse platforms and their content regarding their privacy aspects. In particular, we aim to explore privacy-friendly and -unfriendly design patterns, categorize them and collect expert opinions on these design patterns. Furthermore, we aim to develop paragons of privacy-friendly user interfaces and evaluate such interfaces in online studies and field experiments in order to derive design practices and recommendations.

Working area:

  • Design, implementation and analysis of empirical studies on privacy in the metaverse (e.g., literature reviews, expert interviews, experiments, field studies).
  • Design, technical implementation and evaluation of novel privacy-friendly user interfaces (e.g., for the purpose of giving informed consent, protecting users against virtual harassment, or securing a user’s privacy when using personal avatars).
  • Support in the development and testing of metrics for evaluating virtual content on metaverse platforms in terms of their impact on user privacy (e.g., dark patterns, deceptive design).
  • Collaboration with other researchers in the field of privacy and consumer research as well as companies that provide content on metaverse platforms or that develop or operate such platforms.
  • Publication of research results at international conferences and in prestigious journals.
  • Science communication, in particular with a focus on developers and citizens.
  • Supervision of students in seminars related to the subject areas.

Required qualifications:

  • Very good university degree in Information Systems, Game Design, Computer Science, Industrial Engineering, Media Psychology, Psychology in IT, Human-Computer Interaction, or a related discipline.
  • Experience in planning and conducting empirical studies based on interviews, surveys and/or experiments.
  • High level of responsibility, determination, creativity, perseverance, and pioneering spirit.
  • Very good proficiency in written and spoken English.
  • Ability to work in a team and good communication skills.

Preferred qualifications:

  • Knowledge of designing and programming virtual worlds in environments such as Unity3D, Roblox, Unreal, or Minecraft is beneficial.
  • Experience in conducting empirical research and academic article writing is advantageous.
  • Understanding and experience in design-driven methodologies (e.g., research through design, participatory design, co-design, design science) is a plus.
  • Ability to communicate complex ideas, concepts and information in an easy-to-understand manner.
  • Enthusiasm for VR, virtual worlds, games and/or gamification.

About us:

Our research group focuses on the increasing penetration of digital games in business, society, and culture, as well as on trends in the games industry, such as AR, VR, Metaverse, or eSports. A particular emphasis is set on the development of innovative gameful solutions, as well as the empirical investigation of the impact of specific game design elements on motivation, user experience, and behavior. Our research is interdisciplinary and takes place at the intersection of psychology, design, computer science, economics, and data science. Our office is located at the FAU premises in downtown Nuremberg. Here we offer a start-up-like working atmosphere in a friendly team with flat hierarchies, direct communication, and a high degree of freedom for all team members. With us, you will receive comprehensive support for your intended doctoral dissertation and assistance in building a network in industry and academia. Likewise, we offer flexibility in the choice of work location.

The position is available from July 2023 and currently has a term of three years.

Employment is in accordance with the provisions of the German Tarifvertrag für den öffentlichen Dienst der Länder (TV-L). The position is limited to the duration of the project, with an option for extension. Severely disabled applicants will be given preferential treatment if they are suitable for the position. We aim to increase the proportion of women at FAU and therefore strongly encourage applications from qualified female candidates.

We kindly ask you to send us your application, including a cover letter, curriculum vitae, copies of certificates as well as one of your most recent scientific papers (e.g., master’s thesis, seminar paper), and, if applicable, a list of previous publications by email to Prof. Dr. Benedikt Morschheuser.

If you have any questions about the position or your application, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Doctoral researcher (m/f/d) for research on gaming in mobility

CARIAD SE, an automotive software company that bundles together Volkswagen Group’s software competencies, is looking for candidates for an industrial doctorate in cooperation with our research group.

PhD position: Exploring the demographic, cultural, social, and psychological factors of gaming in mobility (m/f/d):
In this role, you will empirically investigate the demographic, cultural, social, and psychological characteristics of potential users of digital games in cars and mobility services through an international cross-sectional study. Further, the project conducts a systematic literature review and experiments to examine relevant design patterns of such solutions.
Apply here: https://cariad.technology/de/en/careers/jobdetail.jobid3751.html

The candidate will be employed at CARIAD SE as doctoral students and supervised by Prof. Dr. Benedikt Morschheuser at FAU Erlangen-Nürnberg, as well as Dr. Steffen P. Walz, Dr. Stefan Mayer and further colleagues at CARIAD.

If you have any questions regarding the PhD position, please do not hesitate to contact Prof. Dr. Benedikt Morschheuser via email or contact form.

 

Further, we offer support in writing an application for international doctoral programs, e.g. in cooperation with the Finnish Gamification Group, as well as PhD scholarships.

For experienced researchers we offer support in writing an application for the attractive Marie Skłodowska-Curie scholarships from the European Union and other scholarship programs.

External Researchers

We are open to external doctoral candidates who would like to join our team. If you are interested please check the WISO and FAU guidelines for external PhD students. When all criteria are met, please contact us!

Research Assistants

The start-up of a chair for gamification and digital customer engagement offers space for a wide range of tasks. Are you a student at FAU and interested? Please write us an email with a résumé, an overview of grades and a summary of your skills, your motivation and areas of interest.

Current Job Offers

Doctoral researcher / Postdoctoral research fellow privacy in the Metaverse

The Assistant Professorship of Information Systems (Gamification) headed by Prof. Dr. Benedikt Morschheuser at Friedrich-Alexander-University Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU) invites applications for a position as a PhD student / postdoctoral researcher (TV-L E13) on privacy in the Metaverse.

Description

We are looking for a postdoctoral researcher or doctoral researcher to carry out research in the area of privacy in the 'metaverse'. The position focuses on investigating privacy-relevant design aspects of 3D worlds, metaverse platforms and services, and on developing design knowledge to support privacy-friendly user interfaces. The opportunity to pursue a PhD in research is available and supported.

The research is part of a consortium project that aims to enable citizens to engage in an informed discourse about the opportunities and risks of using metaverse platforms on their privacy, self-determination, and data protection. It also aims to develop knowledge, design principles, and metrics for developers and companies to design privacy-protective metaverse content, and to explore and test methods for incorporating user perspectives in the development and design of virtual three-dimensional (3D) experiences.

The need for action in this area is massive, as there are already millions of users on platforms such as Roblox, Fortnite Creative, or Minecraft who create virtual 3D worlds, and more and more companies are deciding to develop and provide digital content on such platforms. So far, however, there are only insufficient guidelines for content creators, developers and companies on data protection and the protection of personal rights.

In this context, our gamification research group at the Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg wants to investigate existing metaverse platforms and their content regarding their privacy aspects. In particular, we aim to explore privacy-friendly and -unfriendly design patterns, categorize them and collect expert opinions on these design patterns. Furthermore, we aim to develop paragons of privacy-friendly user interfaces and evaluate such interfaces in online studies and field experiments in order to derive design practices and recommendations.

Working area:

  • Design, implementation and analysis of research on privacy in the metaverse (e.g., literature reviews, expert interviews, experiments, field studies).
  • Design, technical implementation and evaluation of novel privacy-friendly user interfaces (e.g., for the purpose of giving informed consent, protecting users against virtual harassment, or securing a user's privacy when using personal avatars).
  • Support in the development and testing of metrics for evaluating virtual content on metaverse platforms in terms of their impact on user privacy (e.g., dark patterns, deceptive design).
  • Collaboration with other researchers in the field of privacy and consumer research as well as companies that provide content on metaverse platforms or that develop or operate such platforms.
  • Publication of research results at international conferences and in prestigious journals.
  • Science communication, in particular with a focus on developers and citizens.
  • Supervision of students in seminars related to the subject areas.

Qualifications

Necessary qualifications:

Required qualifications:

  • Very good university degree in Information Systems, Game Design, Computer Science, Industrial Engineering, Media Psychology, Psychology in IT, Human-Computer Interaction, or a related discipline.
  • Experience in planning and conducting empirical studies based on interviews, surveys and/or experiments.
  • High level of responsibility, determination, creativity, perseverance, and pioneering spirit.
  • Very good proficiency in written and spoken English.
  • Ability to work in a team and good communication skills.

Desirable qualifications:

Preferred qualifications:

  • Knowledge of designing and programming virtual worlds in environments such as Unity3D, Roblox, Unreal, or Minecraft is beneficial.
  • Experience in conducting empirical research and academic article writing is advantageous.
  • Understanding and experience in design-driven methodologies (e.g., research through design, participatory design, co-design, design science) is a plus.
  • Ability to communicate complex ideas, concepts and information in an easy-to-understand manner.
  • Enthusiasm for VR, virtual worlds, games and/or gamification.

Supplementary description

Limited research project

About us:

Our research group focuses on the increasing penetration of digital games in business, society, and culture, as well as on trends in the games industry, such as AR, VR, Metaverse, or eSports. A particular emphasis is set on the development of innovative gameful solutions, as well as the empirical investigation of the impact of specific game design elements on motivation, user experience, and behavior. Our research is interdisciplinary and takes place at the intersection of psychology, design, computer science, economics, and data science. Our office is located at the FAU premises in downtown Nuremberg. Here we offer a start-up-like working atmosphere in a friendly team with flat hierarchies, direct communication, and a high degree of freedom for all team members. With us, you will receive comprehensive support for your intended doctoral dissertation and assistance in building a network in industry and academia. Likewise, we offer flexibility in the choice of work location.The position is available from July 2023 and currently has a term of three years.

Employment is in accordance with the provisions of the German Tarifvertrag für den öffentlichen Dienst der Länder (TV-L). The position is limited to the duration of the project, with an option for extension. We aim to increase the proportion of women at FAU and therefore strongly encourage applications from qualified female candidates.

We kindly ask you to send us your application, including a cover letter, curriculum vitae, copies of certificates as well as one of your most recent scientific papers (e.g., master's thesis, seminar paper), and, if applicable, a list of previous publications by email to Prof. Dr. Benedikt Morschheuser.

If you have any questions about the position or your application, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Notice

Für alle Stellenausschreibungen gilt: Die Friedrich-Alexander-Universität fördert die berufliche Gleichstellung der Frauen. Frauen werden deshalb ausdrücklich aufgefordert, sich zu bewerben.

Schwerbehinderte im Sinne des Schwerbehindertengesetzes werden bei gleicher fachlicher Qualifikation und persönlicher Eignung bevorzugt berücksichtigt, wenn die ausgeschriebene Stelle sich für Schwerbehinderte eignet. Details dazu finden Sie in der jeweiligen Ausschreibung unter dem Punkt "Bemerkungen".

Bei Wunsch der Bewerberin, des Bewerbers, kann die Gleichstellungsbeauftragte zum Bewerbungsgespräch hinzugezogen werden, ohne dass der Bewerberin, dem Bewerber dadurch Nachteile entstehen.

Ausgeschriebene Stellen sind grundsätzlich teilzeitfähig, es sei denn, im Ausschreibungstext erfolgt ein anderweitiger Hinweis.

Release date: 17.05.2023

Wissenschaftliche/r Mitarbeiter/in (m/w/d) (Doktoranden/Doktorandin) für Forschung zu Privatheit im Metaverse

Juniorprofessur für Wirtschaftsinformatik, insbesondere Gamification - adidas Stiftungsprofessur unter der Leitung von Prof. Dr. Benedikt Morschheuser an der Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU) sucht eine/n wissenschaftliche/n Mitarbeiter/in (m/w/d) für eine TVL-13 Stelle zu Forschung im Bereich der Privatheit im "Metaversum" (engl. Metaverse).

Description

Unsere Forschungsgruppe sucht eine/n wissenschaftliche/n Mitarbeiter/in (m/w/d) für eine TVL-13 Stelle zu Forschung im Bereich der Privatheit im „Metaversum“ (engl. Metaverse). Der Schwerpunkt der Stelle liegt auf der Erforschung von Privatsphäre relevanten Gestaltungsaspekten von 3D Welten, Metaverse-Plattformen und -Services sowie auf der Erarbeitung von Gestaltungswissen zur Unterstützung Privatsphäre-freundlicher Benutzerschnittstellen. Die Möglichkeit zur Promotion im Forschungsbereich ist gegeben und wird unterstützt.Die Forschung ist Teil eines Konsortialprojekts, welches darauf abzielt Bürger:innen einen informierten Diskurs über die Chancen und Risiken der Nutzung von Metaverse-Plattformen auf ihre Privatheit, Selbstbestimmtheit und den Datenschutz zu ermöglichen. Außerdem sollen für Entwickler:innen und Unternehmen Wissen, Designprinzipien und Bewertungsmetriken für die Ausgestaltung Privatsphäre-schützender Metaverse-Inhalte entwickelt sowie Methoden für die Einbeziehung der Perspektiven von Nutzer:innen in der Entwicklung von Designanforderungen für und im Metaversum erforscht und erprobt werden.Der Handlungsbedarf in diesem Bereich ist massiv, da es bereits Millionen von Nutzer:innen auf Plattformen wie Roblox, Fortnite Creative oder Minecraft gibt die selbst virtuelle 3D-Welten erschaffen und immer mehr Unternehmen sich für die Entwicklung und Bereitstellung von digitalen Inhalten auf solchen Plattformen entscheiden. Bislang gibt es für diese Entwickler:innen und Unternehmen aber nur unzureichende Richtlinien zum Datenschutz und zum Schutz der Persönlichkeitsrechte.Vor diesem Hintergrund möchte unsere Forschungsgruppe für Gamification an der Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg die Gestaltung von aktuellen Inhalten auf Metaverse-Plattformen in Bezug auf deren Wahrung der individuellen Privatsphäre untersuchen, Privatsphäre-freundliche und bzw. -unfreundliche Gestaltungsmuster identifizieren, kategorisieren und mit Stellungnahmen von Expert:innen abgleichen. Weiter möchten wir konkrete Demonstratoren von neuen Privatsphäre-freundlichen Benutzerschnittstellen entwickeln und in Online-Studien und Feldexperimenten evaluieren, um Designpraktiken als Empfehlungen für die Praxis abzuleiten.

Aufgabenbereich:

  • Konzeption, Durchführung und Auswertung von empirischen Forschungsarbeiten zum Thema Privatsphäre im Metaversum (z.B. Literaturstudien, Experten:innen-Interviews, Experimente, Feldstudien).
  • Design und Evaluation von Benutzerschnittstellen und Designpraktiken, die es den Nutzer:innen ermöglichen, ihr Recht auf Privatsphäre im Metaversum effektiv wahrzunehmen (z.B. Einwilligungen, Design-Maßnahmen zum Schutz vor virtuellen Belästigungen, Sichtbarkeit von Avatar-Eigenschaften/Körpersprache).
  • Unterstützung bei der Entwicklung und Testung von Metriken zur Bewertung von virtuellen Inhalten auf Metaverse-Plattformen hinsichtlich ihrer Auswirkungen auf die Privatsphäre der Nutzer:innen (z.B. Dark Patterns, Deceptive Design).
  • Zusammenarbeit mit anderen Forscher:innen im Bereich Datenschutz und Konsumforschung sowie Unternehmen die Inhalte auf Metaverse-Plattformen anbieten oder solche Plattformen entwickeln oder betreiben.
  • Veröffentlichung von Forschungsergebnissen in hochrangigen Konferenzen und Fachzeitschriften.
  • Wissenschaftskommunikation, insbesondere zu Entwickler:innen und Bürger:innen.
  • Betreuung von Studierenden im Rahmen von Abschlussarbeiten und Seminaren in verwandten Themenbereichen.

Qualifications

Necessary qualifications:

  • Sehr guter Universitätsabschluss in Wirtschaftsinformatik, Game-Design, Informatik, Wirtschaftsingenieurwesen, Medienpsychologie, Psychologie mit Bezug zu IT, Mensch-Computer-Interaktion oder einer angrenzenden Disziplin.
  • Erfahrung in der Planung und Durchführung von empirischen Studien auf der Basis von Interviews, Umfragen und/oder Experimenten.
  • Ein hohes Maß an Verantwortungsbewusstsein, Zielstrebigkeit, Kreativität, Ausdauer und Pioniergeist.
  • Sehr gute Englischkenntnisse in Wort und Schrift.
  • Teamfähigkeit und gute kommunikative Fähigkeiten.

Desirable qualifications:

  • Kenntnisse in der Gestaltung und Programmierung von virtuellen Welten in Umgebungen wie Unity3D, Roblox, Unreal, Minecraft.
  • Kenntnisse im wissenschaftlichen Arbeiten und Publizieren von Forschungsarbeiten sind von Vorteil.
  • Erfahrung in designorientierten Forschungsmethoden (z. B. Design-Science-Research, Participatory Design, Co-Design) sind von Vorteil.
  • Die Fähigkeit, komplexe Ideen, Konzepte und Informationen leicht verständlich zu kommunizieren.
  • Begeisterung für VR, virtuelle Welten, Spiele und/oder Gamification.

Supplementary description

Limited research project

Über uns:

Unsere Forschungsgruppe widmet sich der zunehmenden Durchdringung von Wirtschaft, Gesellschaft und Kultur mit digitalen Games sowie Trends der Games-Industrie, wie AR, VR, Metaverse oder eSports. Ein besonderer Fokus bildet hierbei die Entwicklung innovativer Gamification-Anwendungen für spielfremde Kontexte, sowie die empirische Untersuchung der Auswirkung spezifischer Game-Design-Elemente auf Motivation, Nutzererleben und Verhalten. Unsere Forschung ist interdisziplinär und findet an der Schnittstelle von Psychologie, Design, Informatik, Wirtschaftswissenschaften und Data-Science statt. Unser Büro befindet sich in den Räumen der FAU in der Nürnberger Innenstadt. Hier bieten wir eine Start-up-ähnliche Arbeitsatmosphäre in einem sympathischen Team mit flachen Hierarchien, direkter Kommunikation und einem hohen Freiheitsgrad für alle Teammitglieder. Bei uns erhalten Sie eine umfangreiche Betreuung für Ihr angestrebtes Promotionsvorhaben und Unterstützung beim Aufbau eines Netzwerks in Industrie und Wissenschaft. Ebenfalls bieten wir Flexibilität bei der Wahl des Arbeitsorts.Die Stelle ist voraussichtlich ab Juli 2023 verfügbar und hat eine Laufzeit von aktuell drei Jahren.

Die Beschäftigung erfolgt nach Maßgabe der Bestimmungen des Tarifvertrags für den öffentlichen Dienst der Länder (TV-L). Die Stelle ist befristet auf die Laufzeit des Projekts mit Option auf Verlängerung. Schwerbehinderte werden bei entsprechender Eignung bevorzugt eingestellt. Wir streben eine Erhöhung des Frauenanteils an und fordern daher entsprechend qualifizierte Interessentinnen ausdrücklich zur Bewerbung auf.

Wir bitten um die Zusendung einer Bewerbung inkl. Anschreiben, Lebenslauf, Zeugniskopien sowie eine Ihrer letzten wissenschaftlichen Arbeiten (z.B. Masterarbeit, Seminararbeit), ggf. eine Liste mit bisherigen Veröffentlichungen per E-Mail an Prof. Dr. Benedikt Morschheuser.

Bei Fragen zur Stelle oder zur Bewerbung stehen wir Ihnen gerne zur Verfügung.

Notice

Für alle Stellenausschreibungen gilt: Die Friedrich-Alexander-Universität fördert die berufliche Gleichstellung der Frauen. Frauen werden deshalb ausdrücklich aufgefordert, sich zu bewerben.

Schwerbehinderte im Sinne des Schwerbehindertengesetzes werden bei gleicher fachlicher Qualifikation und persönlicher Eignung bevorzugt berücksichtigt, wenn die ausgeschriebene Stelle sich für Schwerbehinderte eignet. Details dazu finden Sie in der jeweiligen Ausschreibung unter dem Punkt "Bemerkungen".

Bei Wunsch der Bewerberin, des Bewerbers, kann die Gleichstellungsbeauftragte zum Bewerbungsgespräch hinzugezogen werden, ohne dass der Bewerberin, dem Bewerber dadurch Nachteile entstehen.

Ausgeschriebene Stellen sind grundsätzlich teilzeitfähig, es sei denn, im Ausschreibungstext erfolgt ein anderweitiger Hinweis.

Release date: 31.05.2023

 

Nothing found, but still curious:

I’m curious

 

Offers of Partners

Currently, no job offer.

 

Assistant Professorship of Information Systems (Gamification) – endowed by adidas

Our research group focuses on the increasing penetration of technology, business, and everyday life with games, game design elements, and emerging phenomena from the (video) gaming industry, such as virtual & augmented realities, virtual goods, eSports, the ‘metaverse’ or serious games.

In particular, we investigate the design of gamified information systems and the effects of game design feature on human motivation, experiences, and behaviour (e.g., engagement, participation, collaboration, performance, learning, or technology use).

We apply our research in various domains (e.g., sales & marketing, mobility, education, collaboration, product design, innovation, creativity) and industries (e.g., consumer goods, automotive, banking, healthcare, education) and focus on finding solutions for urgent challenges of organizations and society.

Research fields

We create impactful scientific knowledge about the ongoing penetration of society, technology, economy and everyday life with digital games and emerging phenomena of the gaming industry in order to better understand these developments and to support society and organizations in solving problems in a ‘gameful’ way

 

 

 

Selection of our research fields and interests:

Gaming meets Product & Service Design

  • Designing gamified information systems
  • Motivational design
  • Game design patterns
  • Game thinking
  • Gamified crowdsourcing and co-creation
  • Personalized gamification
  • Gamification of future mobility and transportation (e.g. in-car gaming)

Gaming meets Marketing & Sales

  • Digital customer engagement
  • Customer steering in the omni-channel
  • Loyalty programs
  • Virtual goods and commerce in the Metaverse
  • Customer insights, gamers/players as customers

Gaming meets Work & Collaboration

  • Gamification in technology-mediated collaboration e.g. crowdsourcing, remote work
  • Gamification for creativity and ingenuity
  • Serious and educational games
  • Gamification in organizational transformation initiatives
  • Human-AI teaming and collaboration
  • Work and education in the “Metaverse”
  • Gamifying sustainable behavior at work

Gaming meets Sports & Health

  • Gamification of exercise, sports & quantified-self
  • Virtual and augmented reality in sports
  • Location-based games
  • eSports
  • Gamification in corporate health
  • Gamification of prevention, therapy and rehabilitation

Gaming meets Society and Culture

  • Inclusive and accessible games and gamification
  • Ethics of gamification
  • Gamification to prevent and counter radicalization and extremism
  • Data Privacy in the Metaverse
  • Understanding the creator economy