Tag Archive for 'eSports'

E- Sports: stress & videogames

Over the past century in sport psychology, stress has been a major topic of study.

One of the most cited definitions is by Selye (1956), who defines stress as “a nonspecific, activation response exhibited by the organism when faced with an unforeseen need or adapting to a disorganizing novelty.” Much is understood about the influence of stress in sports performance; however, little is known about what happens in an e-sports performance.

The most recent systematic review on stress in gamers comes from the University of Leipzig (Leis & Lautenbach, 2020), which collects 17 studies on stress in e-sports. Stress stems from:

  • internal factors – age, gender, previous experiences
  • external factors – game environment, presence of audience, game results

Stress in e-sports should be monitored at 3 different moments: baseline (resting condition), competition (the event) and post competition (post event). The levels of stress and activation depending on the type of video game and if it is a competitive or non-competitive session.

To lknow more read the full article by Emiliano Bernardi on Horizon Psytech & Games

Will be esports at 2024 Olympic Games?

Esports will likely go to the 2024 Olympics. Below are characteristics of these sports and the world’s top athletes.

  • Thiel and John (2019): esports, like sports, take place in contexts where competing teams or players fight for victory, with rules that apply to everyone and characterized by training regimens that lead to improvements in typical game skills. Game-specific tactical knowledge plays a decisive role with regard to success.
  • Pedraza-Ramirez, Musculus, Raab and Laborde (2020): existence of ranking systems and competition regulated by official leagues are fundamental aspects to consider a video game as an esport.
  • García-Naveira et al. (2018): esports are activities that test human performance, are integrated with technology and media, have a large mental component and are socially accepted.

Characteristics top esports athletes

  • knowledge of the video game
  • motivation
  • ability to make decisions
  • ability to separate personal life from sports activities
  • concentration
  • emotional control
  • positive attitude
  • commitment to continuous improvement and mental and physical warm-ups
  • follow pre-competitive routines and be able to adapt to new game situations.

(from Garcia-Lanzo, Bonilla and Chamarro, IJSP, 6/2020)

The sport revolution: the Games of the future

When a leisure activity is practiced, for fun, for recreation but also professionally, by one third of the world’s population is also possible that it becomes part of the largest worldwide event: the Olympic Games. A study promoted by Razer, computer and accessories for electronic game company, people who at least once a month or one hour per week playing video games are 2.1 billion, equivalent to 29% of the Earth’s population. It emerges the 71% of the millenians, young 12-35 year old, are players and they have the advantage of having their whole life ahead to continue to develop this interest. In addition, the number of viewers of video games and eSports is currently about 360 millions and it’s expected to double by 2021.

If we look at these considerations paying attention to economic interests that led to this kind of diffusion, it seems pretty obvious why the International Olympic Committee (IOC) opened to eSports, defining them as ” sport activity ” in all respects: ” The competitive eSports can be considered a sport, and the players involved are preparing and training with an intensity that can be compared to traditional sports athletes.” It is equally clear that, in this field, the interests of the companies that drive the success of their products have been linked over the years to the affirmation of a sport concept in contemporary society, in which the human being can be competitive in those activities, eSports, in which prevails the mental component at the expense of physical and motor component. Indeed,  eSports respond at this need while maintaining the competitive component, the loneliness of sport champs, who reach the success through a total dedication to this work.

On the other hand, since long time the traditional sports are in crisis, not only at the high level too much conditioned by doping and drug abuses but even at youth level. Increasingly needs economic investment that many families cannot afford and the pressure on the young in term of competitiveness, exploitation of their physique and commitment not appropriate for their age. These reasons are among the main causes of the adolescents drop-out.

In addition, the use of computers has greatly changed our way of living as well as sport, through the use of new technologies to assess the performance and build training programs. In summary, we are experiencing a radical change in the sport concept, in which the exasperation of competitiveness has changed the culture of sports organizations, pushing many young out from sports.

With the latter decision of the IOC we entered in a new phase, in which the use of new technological systems becomes its-self a sport activity officially recognized and regulated. It represents a way to regain back at sports the millenian, as the main beneficiaries of eSports, allowing the IOC to reconquer them to Olympic family.