E. Więcek-Janka, Wł. Mantura, From reality through simulation game to alterreality. HCI International 2009, ISBN , ss

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1 E. Więcek-Janka, Wł. Mantura, From reality through simulation game to alterreality. HCI International 2009, ISBN , ss

2 From Reality through Simulation Game to the Alterreality Ewa Więcek-Janka, Władysław Mantura Institute of Management Engineering, Poznan University of Technology, Strzelecka 11, Poznan, Poland. Abstract. The purpose of this publication is to draw attention to the issue of negative factors shaping the personality of potential managers and their influence on psychosomatic diseases. The environment for the research was virtual reality of simulation strategic games. The results of the research indicate a problem of isolation from reality in favor of simulation games alterreality. The author points at significant relations between neurotism, psychotism and the amount of time spent in the alterreality. Keywords: alterreality, simulation games, psychosomatic diseases. 1 Introduction Nowadays the future manager s education is realized through systems of education and school programs. The education process of a competent manager does not depend on knowledge only [1]. Person is born with certain genotype and realizes his social roles in education and development of abilities. Process of socialization is related to the development of abilities of motivating, leading, arbitration, empathy etc [1]. Disturbances in socialization of adolescents and lack of social contact make interpersonal communication and ability of motivation difficult. The author has characterized consequences of long-lasting games MMORPG and isolating a player from reality and social life. If a person creates virtuality where he realizes social roles this virtuality becomes alterreality for him [2]. The heart and technical core of AR is a simulation system which encompasses programmed behavior and regulates all interactions and predicted actions of objects and simulation of principles of physics (real and imagined) [3], [2]. J. Drexler (at all) believes that creation of new interfaces has the greatest influence on designing role playing simulation games [4]. They use neurophysiological sensors enabling, for example, a direct control over computer generated character with brain waves with the use of cordless EEG tool. Games use biological feedback. More and more often computer games include scientific tools such as sensors which monitor players well-being in order to provide full satisfaction in new versions of games. Prototypes of interactive toys using the augmented cognition are the future.

3 2. Personality and somatic diseases The existence of somatic diseases is commonly known (and more and more frequent), therefore doctors and psychologists [5] seek connections between predisposition to a certain ailment and a type of personality[3]. One of the suggestions to link those variables was presented by Eysenck [6]. He considered introversion vs. extraversion and neuroticism vs. normality and presented them on the matrix [7]. This matrix distinguishes three types of personality determining health or psychosomatic illness, called A, B and C and types of reaction to stress, marked 1,2,3 and 4 [8]. Connection between types of personality and reaction to stress was related to basic personality dimensions: neuroticism, extravercy and psychoticism. It is presented on Figure 1. Neurotic extraverts type A, react to stress situation with excessive excitement (type 2), neurotic introverts type C, are incensed (type 1), and level-headed ambiverts (type B) can maintain their autonomy (type 4), or are unstable depending on situation (type 3). These people represent higher state of psychoticism. Fig. 1. Relationship between type of personality and dimensions of personality [8] p.32 Author s research objective was to use the basics of the Eysenck method with assumption that personality of a human will be measured twice, first "plunged" into alterreality, and second outside alterreality. 3 Research methods A primary objective in a designed research process was to find the motives of "entering' AR and the influence of staying in AR on personality. A detailed objective was to find a scope of personality changes in players. Particular interest was given to qualitative variables: neuroticism, psychoticism and Eternal & Internal Control. Research was realized in 2008 and 2009 in three phases. Phase one consisted of selection of volunteers and preliminary qualification. 101 youngsters (aged 14-18) volunteered and were interviewed. The aim of the interview was to learn the daily schedule of potential research subjects and talk to their parents (in order to get their approval and promise of cooperation). A variable deciding about qualification for the next stage was a large amount of hours spent on playing simulation games (leisure). 82 people were qualified for the next stage (65 men and 17 women). A selection of volunteers not interested in simulation games was also performed and a control group

4 consisting of 10 people was created. In phase two a research method was defined and a questionnaire was created in which a personality inventory EPQ-R was included. The hardest (but also necessary) postulate to fulfill was 24 hours isolation from computer equipment and all types of PSP, game-boy etc. Only 25 out of the initial sample of 82 people survived the isolation period. Phase three was realized after 3-4 weeks from the first experiment. Another experiment was conducted with the same tool. A significant difference lay in a situation. An experiment was conducted after continuous playing for 6 hours a role play simulation game of MMORPOG type (in which a player felt free and casual). The questionnaire, apart from EPQ-R, included a number of questions regarding the lifestyle of youngsters, such as a number of hours spent on playing computer games daily. Author s purpose was to conduct an accuracy test for objective and stated research problems and hypotheses (lack of differences in achieved results would indicate recurring errors in research project). Therefore, a parallel measurement was done with a control group. The elaboration includes stating four working hypotheses which are presented in table 1. Table 1. Research hypothesis No zero-hypothesis alternative hypothesis 1. Long-lasting plunging in AR does not influence any changes in personality Long-lasting plunging in AR influences changes in personality. 2. There is no significant difference between the level of neuroticism in functioning in There is a significant difference between the level of neuroticism in functioning in 3. There is no significant difference between the level of extrovertism in functioning in 4. There is no significant difference between the level of psychoticism in functioning in There is a significant difference between the level of extrovertism in functioning in There is a significant difference between the level of psychoticism in functioning in To test hypothesis 1 a t-student test of differences between averages was selected according to the following equation. Other hypotheses were tested with the Wilcoxon signs test. 4. Interpretation of results A factor integrating human behavior in specific reality, apart from commitment, pro and anti social behavior, communication and emotions, is time devoted to different activities. The shortest time declared by research subjects spent on playing games was 3 hours, the longest 7 hours. Average time spent on games was 5,5 hour. The author's interest was also caught by the time devoted to leisure, meals, learning and sport of every subject.

5 Table 2. Relation between time and everyday tasks Activity sleep meals school Study sport (games) average of a sample 5-8 1, ,5 average of control gr. 8 1, ,5 A rule in a researched sample is that free time depends on the time spent on playing games (the more time they spent at the computer, the less they devoted to sport or leisure). Phase two and three of research process included an experiment on proper sample and control sample. Achieved results were grouped according to the order of experiments (estimators 1 and 2) and measured dimension of personality: neuroticism (N), extrovertis-introvertism (E-I), psychoticism (P), and amount of hours spent in game (h/ar), free time devoted to sports (h/sport). Table 3 presents average results (calculated values, expressed in stens). Table 3. Distribution of results in proper sample and control group Pr.samp. N 1 N 2 E-I 1 E I 2 P 1 P 2 h/ar h/sport 5,96 2,76 6,28 4,28 5,06 6,32 5, Contr.gr. N 1 N 2 E-I 1 E-I 2 P 1 P 2 h/ar h/sport 3,50 4,0 4,50 4,0 3,0 3,50 2,50 3 To set a major hypothesis three detailed hypotheses were assigned, for which the critical area, significance level α=0,05 and degrees of freedom df= =33 were defined. Statistics of research data, critical value of a test and reasoning based on that data are presented in table 4.Testing for detailed hypotheses made it possible to reject zero-hypotheses and the alternative hypothesis accept. Table 4. Statistics for detailed hypothesis hypothesis II Neurotic. 1 test statistics: t = 23,93 the zero-hypothesis rejected Neurotic. 2 test statistics: t = 12,62 the zero-hypothesis rejected hypothesis III Extrovert. 1 test statistics: t = 17,3 the zero-hypothesis rejected Extrovert. 2 test statistics: t = 2,72 the zero-hypothesis rejected hypothesis IV Psychotic. 1 test statistics: t = 16,6 the zero-hypothesis rejected Psychotic. 2 test statistics: t = 22,93 the zero-hypothesis rejected The variables of neuroticism and psychoticism were also compared for the sample group separately for phase two and three. In phase two, in the conditions of isolation from a computer, all subjects of the research achieved the scores in stens on neuroticism scale reflecting moderate instability, which is connected with being oversensitive to environment, burst of anger, tendency to blame others. On extravercy scale most subjects achieved results characteristic for ambiverts. The results on psychoticism scale oscillated around norm - what points at stability in psychosomatic system. In phase three, in conditions of long-lasting participation in simulation games, the results were observed on neuroticism scale - all subjects scores reflect full

6 emotional stabilization. Such (significant) difference may suggest internal stability during the game and stability disorder in time of isolation from games. Such results may indicate that subjects do not feel safe in RR. The feeling of safety occurs while "plunged" into alterreality. It might be connected with the possibility of setting the rules and full control of alterreality functioning. Some changes were also noticed on extrovertism scale. The behavior changed [9], [10] and is characterized as more introvertic. Exiting the game results in sudden increase of aggression and negation of the rules of living in reality. Deepening the differences between functioning in reality (RR) and alterreality (AR) may lead to addiction. Psychoticism scale has drawn particular attention of the author, as in all cases the subjects achieved increased results in AR. Each subject seems to have symptoms of psychopathy and as a result they are predisposed to addictions, bipolar disease, and schizophrenic behavior [2], [8]. Considering such approach, alterreality, role play, simulation games and simulators will realize the postulate of increase and development of human cognition. The author s intent, apart from presenting the augmented cognition in a holistic approach, was to draw attention to a problem of easy transfer from reality to alterreality. Frequent visits in AR lead to changes in personality (what the author tried to prove) which may become permanent. Extensive "staying" in AR may have far gone consequences in shaping youngsters personalities. Functioning in the reality of hightechnology forces use new, virtual. People chose to work in new, often virtual and global enterprises. How then will the behavior of a worker of such enterprise differ from that of a boy entering AR? The author suggests that functioning first in reality (RR), second in simulation game, and third in alterreality (AR) is one continuum of functioning. Observations and analysis of results prove that transfer through the above mentioned continuum to alterreality is fairly easy and an individual quickly adjusts to this new reality. However, the return is much harder, which is reflected by the changes in personality after long-lasting isolation from alternative reality (AR). References 1. Wiecek-Janka E., & Balcerak A., (2006). Management games in Management teaching Selected Psychological Aspect, Foundations of Control and Management Sciences, no. 06/2006, p Więcek-Janka, E., (2005). Osobowość wirtualna, Człowiek a światy wirtualne, Ustroń-Zdrój V Banse, G., (2005). Virtual realisty und ihr Bezung zur Real Reality, Człowiek a światy wirtualne, Ustroń-Zdrój10-13.V Drexler J., & Sciarini L., & Smith P., & Nicholson D., (2006). Playing Games with the Mind: Augmented Cognition in the Entertainment Industry. 5. Freud, Z., (1973). Poza zasadą przyjemności, PIW, Warszawa. 6. Eysenck, H. J., (1992). Four ways Five Factors are not basic, Personality and Individual Differences, nr Strelau, J., (1992). Temperament inteligencja, WN PWN, Warszawa. 8. Brzozowski P., Drwal, R.Ł., (1995). Kwestionariusz Osobowości Eysenck,. PTP, Warszawa. 9. Nęcka, E., (2002). Psychologia twórczości, GWP, Gdańsk. 10. Zimbardo, Ph. G., Ruch, F. L., (1994). Psychologia i życie, WN PWN, Warszawa.