Worldbuilding and Wellbeing
Explore the imaginative potential of worldbuilding and play for ethics, wellbeing, belonging and community.
Overview
Join us on Wednesday 21 October for an event in the AHRC IAA funded project ‘Worldbuilding and Ethical Game Design’, led by Dr Jeremy Kidwell, Dr Bettina Bódi and Dr Dorothy Butchard at the University of Birmingham.
Come along to share perspectives and practical approaches to worldbuilding and wellbeing in games and other media. The discussion will explore roleplaying, psychological safety, community through play, alternative ways of being and more.
- Wed 21 October, 2pm-4pm
- In person: Institute of Advanced Studies, 54 Pritchatts Road, University of Birmingham (directions below)
- Online: Zoom – register for the link
Schedule
- 14:00-14:15: Welcome and Project Update
- 14:15-14:45: Dr Jodie Russell (Psychology): ‘Taking Play Seriously: The Value of Session 0 to Psychological Safety in Dungeons & Dragons’
In this talk, we will provide the preliminary results of a study investigating how the phenomenon of “Session 0” within Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) facilitates psychologically safe play among adults, identifying five overarching themes: Sparking Interest, Commitment and Expectations, Safety Tools and the Social Contract, Agency versus Collaboration, and Style of Gameplay. Audiences won’t need previous knowledge of D&D for this talk. - 14:45-15:00: Break with refreshments
- 15:00-16:00: Play and Wellbeing: Workshop discussion exploring how games and play may support and enhance experiences of comfort, reassurance, safety, and individual or community wellbeing.
About the project
The ‘Worldbuilding and Ethical Game Design‘ project explores creative worldbuilding and game design in the West Midlands, asking how games can foster understanding across diverse persons and communities and build ethical reasoning. We are developing collaborative partnerships with local games designers and working with media education charity Rural Media to run creative worldbuilding workshops.
This project is led by Dr Jeremy Kidwell, Dr Bettina Bódi and Dr Dorothy Butchard at the University of Birmingham, with support from the Centre for Urban Wellbeing and Culture Forward. It is funded by the AHRC IAA User Engagement Fund at the University of Birmingham.