Lightning Talk
Mark Thoburn
OCAD University
Biography
Mark Thoburn is enrolled in OCADU’s Digital Futures program. His focus is the design
and prototyping of interactive experiences, exploring the interplay between gaming, play and ‘brain health’.
Abstract
EEG studies of Tibetan monks practicing metta (a concept from the Buddhist
tradition that means, among other things, loving kindness) “conclude that attention and affective processes, which gamma-band EEG synchronization may reflect, are flexible skills that can be trained (Lutz, 2004).” In other words, the brain activity of monks while practicing metta is significantly different from the brain activity of the uninitiated practicing the same thing.
It’s no stretch, then, to consider the benefits of metta to include emotional health and emotional intelligence in the modern western context of the words. If the goal is an exploration of video game mechanics that promote emotional health through regulation, it is worth taking a look at metta, if only for the fact that to practice metta, one must become the compassion. Preliminary experiments using consumer-level EEG headsets suggest metta as a powerful tool to develop novel game mechanics that produce positive, real-world outcomes. This line of inquiry explores new horizons in game design.