What is it about?
Video games are made by multidisciplinary teams that combine many kinds of media and technical work, often under high stress. In this setting, emotional intelligence—the ability to recognize, manage, and use emotions—matters for leadership, teamwork, and well-being at work. In this study, we looked at how emotional intelligence changes across job roles in video game development. We compared different specialties (horizontal differences) and different levels in the hierarchy (vertical differences), using a survey with self-rated emotional intelligence scales filled in by video game professionals.
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Why is it important?
Emotional intelligence changed little between job roles. However, leaders scored higher in some dimensions, such as managing their own emotions. This gap between leaders and team members should not be ignored: it could create an “emotional hierarchy” and add stress to leadership positions.
Perspectives
Video game software engineering is one of my main research areas, and the human side of game teams is often overlooked. The result I find most relevant is the gap between leaders and the rest of the team: leaders reported higher emotional intelligence, especially in managing their own emotions. This gap could create an “emotional hierarchy”, and I think it deserves attention because it can add stress to leadership roles.
Prof. Stefano Lambiase
Aalborg Universitet
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Exploring Emotional Intelligence Across Job Roles in Video Game Development Teams, IEEE Transactions on Games, January 2025, Institute of Electrical & Electronics Engineers (IEEE),
DOI: 10.1109/tg.2025.3593423.
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