What is it about?

The concept of flow introduced by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi is used extensively in human-computer interaction (HCI), video games, and many other fields, but its definition is conceptually vague. To address this, we use cognitive science theory to expose inconsistencies in flow’s definition, and introduce fuse, a concept related to flow but consistent with cognitive science. We then present a model hypothesizing the cognitive processes underlying fuse and illustrate the model’s practical value by deriving from it a set of design heuristics that we exemplify in the context of video games.

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Why is it important?

By rethinking flow from a cognitive perspective, this article intends to improve conceptual clarity and theoretical robustness in the literature. This article also provides new design heuristics intended for designers in the fields of video games, HCI, and others. Finally, the article provides an HCI-oriented review of fundamental cognitive science research on consciousness, self-awareness, automatic action execution, mind wandering, attention and working memory, and susceptibility to distractions.

Perspectives

When I started this project, my motivation was to help conciliate flow theory with current cognitive science. However, as I dug deeper and “fuse” was born, my motivation became more about understanding experience itself. I became fascinated by the mystery of consciousness and its relation to attention, as well as with the roles that unconscious processes and self-awareness play in shaping experience. I wish this paper sparks this type of fascination in you and motivates you to reflect about how unbelievably sensational this thing that we call existence is.

Kyros Jalife

Read the Original

This page is a summary of: From Flow to Fuse, Proceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction, October 2021, ACM (Association for Computing Machinery),
DOI: 10.1145/3474683.
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