- Professor Nick Bowman of the is an expert on the user experience of immersive and interactive media.
- His research includes the cognitive, emotional, physical and social benefits of gaming.
- Bowman is the founder of the Interaction Lab, which informs systems design and public policy debates about gaming.
At the end of a long day, Nick Bowman likes to retreat to his basement, boot up his PC and browse his massive video game library.
Communications professor Nick Bowman studies the psychological benefits of video gaming and virtual reality. The St. Louis native got bit by the gaming bug in the 1990s.
Today, the 麻花影视 professor has selected Fallout 76, an online role-playing game set in post-apocalyptic Appalachia. Slugging coffee from a porcelain beer stein, he fends off enemies and takes down bosses for weapons, food and clothing.
鈥淢any people think gaming is antisocial or bad for you,鈥� says Bowman, a globe-trotting media psychologist and communication scholar. 鈥淭he truth is that it acts as a 鈥榯hird place鈥� where you can develop social skills in a low-pressure environment.鈥�
Based in the Newhouse School, he oversees doctoral and in mass communications and , serves as founding director of the Interaction Lab, and leads graduate and undergraduate courses.
鈥淕aming is an accessible and affordable way to unplug for a few minutes鈥攚hich is to say that it鈥檚 mundane,鈥� says Bowman, who has a dozen books and more than 160 articles to his name. 鈥淎nd that鈥檚 what makes it interesting.鈥�
Socializing at Scale
Bowman with sophomore Evan Mastroccio and doctoral student Janaki Nair. A media psychologist and communication scholar, the Newhouse School professor teaches and conducts research worldwide.
From their humble origins as university lab experiments in the 1950s, video games have evolved into a $250 billion industry with more than 3.6 billion players worldwide.
鈥淎lmost everybody plays them, and those who don鈥檛 often engage in gaming culture,鈥� Bowman says. 鈥淲atching livestreams of games like Pok茅mon and Super Mario is almost as popular as playing them.鈥�
Convinced that gaming improves cognitive function, he divides his research into three foci.
One examines video games as 鈥�,鈥� helping users process grief and trauma in a safe, controlled way.
鈥淲e obtain a sense of agency by engaging directly, rather than passively, in a gaming experience,鈥� says Bowman, launch editor of the open access journal Global Perspectives in Communication.
He also studies the cognitive, emotional, physical and social effects of gaming on users. Known as 鈥渄emands,鈥� player perceptions provide developers with important clues about video game engagement.
Among Bowman鈥檚 avatars is an Otto-themed 1981 Porsche 930 Turbo, which he has customized for the racing game Gran Turismo 7.
A third area involves player-avatar relationships. More than a 鈥渟econd self,鈥� an avatar can be any number of things鈥攁n asocial tool, an independent social character or a collaborative partner.
鈥淣othing about interpersonal communication requires the other person to be human. It鈥檚 all perceptual,鈥� he says. 鈥淏onding with a game character makes the narrative more meaningful, proving that humans can socialize at scale.鈥�
Game On
鈥淕aming is great therapy,鈥� says Bowman, noting the popularity of 麻花影视鈥檚 Esports Gaming Room (Barnes Center at The Arch), Gaming and Esports Center (Schine Student Center) and Digital Scholarship Space (Bird Library).
Growing up in St. Louis, Bowman got bit by the gaming bug in the 1990s.
He realized, early on, that humans are intrinsically driven to enjoy video games鈥攖hat interfacing with the virtual world satisfies psychological desires. 鈥淸Video games] help us feel competent when we win,鈥� Bowman says. 鈥淭hey let us make choices on our own, and they give us the ability to connect with others.鈥�
Following faculty appointments on both sides of the Atlantic and a Fulbright Fellowship in Taiwan, Bowman arrived at 麻花影视 in 2022.
Bowman鈥檚 Interaction Lab offers undergraduate research opportunities in conjunction with SOURCE.
He鈥檚 since founded the Interaction Lab, which informs systems design and public policy debates about gaming and offers research opportunities through the (SOURCE). The lab also maintains a play-testing partnership with Atari.
Elena Zhao, a doctoral student in mass communications and the Interaction Lab鈥檚 manager, uses the facility to study mood management and, more broadly, the 鈥渢herapeutic potential of gameplay.鈥�
One of Zhao鈥檚 favorites games is Cyberpunk 2077 because it allows her to navigate a world so 鈥渢hrilling and alienating that [she] feels real emotion.鈥� 鈥淭he phenomenological gap between 鈥榯his is a game鈥� and 鈥榯his is affecting me鈥� is where my research lies,鈥� she says.
Adds Bowman: 鈥淲hether you want to relieve stress, build brain power or just take a break, gaming is great therapy.鈥�
