About run action Gamification of worlds in the service of the modern society of the 21st century – cooperation network
The aim of this activity is to stimulate advanced research on e-Sports, games, and VR/AR experiences at the University of Warsaw (both conceptual and equipment-related, using modern biometric research equipment). Recent meta-analyses conducted on the basis of World of Science (WoS) and Scopus have shown that the most popular research topics in coming years will be about games, eSports, VR (virtual reality) and XR (extended reality). Using its modern equipment and international contacts, the University of Warsaw has a chance to become an important centre of research on these areas. The cooperation of researchers from various disciplines and scientific fields, in Poland and abroad, will allow our University to gain significant international visibility in the best scientific journals and during the most prestigious Information and Communications Technology (ICT) conferences. The proposed activities will strengthen and significantly expand the ones initiated at the University of Warsaw in recent years (e.g., in the Media Research Laboratory), enhance research on games and the players themselves, and on VR experiences in the context of education.
A virtual platform will allow for the formation of a network of researchers and research centres which are dealing with eSports, computer games and augmented realty (AR)/virtual reality (VR) experiences, which are internationally recognised through joint publications in respected journals and monographs, and through participation in/organisation of prestigious scientific conferences. The aim is to make the University of Warsaw a kind of virtual hub, involving researchers from various disciplines and fields of science and research from Poland and, above all, from abroad, who are involved in researching AR/VR games and experiences. This platform would serve for e-meetings and become a virtual space for sharing various databases and the results of biometric experiments, which could then be discussed and analysed to create new, international joint applications for grants, and prestigious, internationally visible scientific publications.
We assume that the coordination of the platform will be carried out by the Laboratory of Media Studies (LBM) at the University of Warsaw, which has the necessary technological background and research experience (analyses of games, eSports, VR/AR, discourse and narration, etc.).
The research topics planned for the coming years are described below. It is worth mentioning that students/doctoral candidates/researchers may request access to a study on a given topic by following the sign-up procedure developed in recent years by the laboratory; the form is online at https://www.lbm.uw.edu.pl/dolacz-do-zespolu (in Polish). After reading about our activities (see https://www.lbm.uw.edu.pl/o-nas, in Polish), when applying, it is necessary to indicate the scope of competence and proposed development path within a given project (e.g., with the support of current members of the Media Studies team). Other centres operating at UW will be invited/encouraged to join.
Examples of planned research projects and topics
- Research on e-Sports (based on the sports games like FIFA 2018);
- Virtual Reality in Education;
- Interface research in ICT;
- Policy gameplay in the media and public opinion – analysis of discourses and narrations;
- Augmented Reality (AR) technology in daily life.
International cooperation
Within the framework of the activity, we plan to establish and develop an international network of research centres on gaming, eSports, and VR/AR interactions. An e-platform will be set up for exchanging experiences, research results, webinars, and create outlets for significant “networking” under the auspices of the University of Warsaw, the international community of researchers of games, eSports and VR/AR. This organisation among researchers and scientific centres could result in an international association of eSports and VR/AR researchers – with congresses organised every 2-3 years (centred around the activities at UW). UW already has numerous research contacts with centres such as the University of Amsterdam, KU Leuven, University of Bonn, University of California Davis, Vilnius University and Charles University; its focus should be on developing contacts in Asia, Australia and the Pacific, while further expanding and deepening relations with the best centres in North America and Europe. There are also plans for inviting outstanding professionals and organising scientific internships (short training sessions, workshops, and study stays of up to 10 days in the best centres in the world). Two major congresses on technology and modern research will be organised under the auspices of the prestigious association IEEE (in 2022 and 2025).
Support for the development of the competences of doctoral candidates and young researchers
Under this theme, the Laboratory of Media Studies (LBM) will support the development of doctoral students and young researchers, through a series of specialised training courses, seminars and workshops in support of research (using the equipment, data and expertise of the Laboratory of Media Studies), competitions for talented young researchers (including doctoral students), and support for international mobility.
Activities
- The laboratory will carry out (1) its own research work and (2) provide substantive and technical support for work carried out in other UW units / by researchers who join the team. Therefore, we will conduct open seminars – in an online format – during which we will present equipment, technological solutions, methods of analysing data, and finally present the results of the conducted research, while also inviting other researchers from the University to get involved.
- The organisation of substantive activities which are open to new members of the research team from all over the University (based on the principles of openness and full inclusiveness).
- Training sessions (technical and content-related) for users of equipment and databases, e.g., by the Laboratory of Media Studies (and the preparation of a starter package for each researcher who submits a topic/project – approx. 50 hours of webinars and training on various methods and the operation of research equipment).
- A series of seminars – the presentation of research by LBM UW and UW collaborators, including seminars with foreign guest speakers (also in an e-meeting format).
- Financing of foreign cooperation (trips to other centres, conferences, seminars, consultations).
- Preparing grant applications to external entities (for projects using the laboratory infrastructure).
- Preparing bids for expert opinions ordered by public institutions (ministries, NCRD, NCN, NAWA, FNP, regional offices, PARP, etc.).
- Information and promotion activities about the laboratory’s offer (especially addressed to the UW community).
- Supporting participation in prestigious international conferences.
Coordinating unit
- Laboratory of Media Studies UW
Entities involved in implementation
- Laboratory of Media Studies UW/ Media Analysis Centre UW
- DELab
- LACH
- DARIAH-PL
- Centres and laboratories established under IDUB (e.g., the Impactful Digital Alliance, Scientometrics)
Units, laboratories, and centres carrying out empirical research at the University of Warsaw, in areas of the social sciences and humanities
About the V Priority Research Area
This POB provides a platform for cooperation among researchers from different disciplines of the social sciences – from economists to sociologists. It will be used to carry out innovative research projects on a European and global scale, on the most important challenges of today’s world. Growing economic and social inequalities, the increasing selectivity, scale, and diversity of mobility, the digital transformation, and ubiquitous systemic risks are all global phenomena, yet they are anchored in processes and structures which are local and regional. It is at these local and regional levels – focusing on Poland and Central and Eastern Europe, while upholding the broader European and global contexts – that researchers from the University of Warsaw will seek answers to questions about the precise nature of these phenomena, concerning their settings, dynamics and consequences.
Our approach is characterised by its interdisciplinarity and openness to new theoretical and empirical solutions. We draw on the potential of outstanding researchers who are active in the field of European and world sciences, as well as on the enthusiasm of its young workers. We also benefit from the achievements and connections which have been developed by the thriving interdisciplinary units and teams which are operating at the University: EUROREG, the Robert Zajoniec Institute for Social Studies, the Laboratory of Media Studies, DELab UW and the Centre of Migration Research.
The basic objective of the activities carried out under POB V is to integrate social researchers at the University of Warsaw and facilitate the development of their potential in national and world sciences. We focus on creating close connections between scientific activities with the teaching process, by creating new fields of study and strengthening existing areas of inquiry, such as urban studies, science studies (scientometrics), or digital sociology.