Designing a game exploring how other’s choices influence our own decisions : An interactive game adapted for in-flight entertainment systems

Abstract: Interactions with others can influence our decision-making, often without us being aware of it. There is a link between influence and decision-making, while, the extent to which other people's decisions influence our own is a multi-faceted and complex question considering our unique personalities and ways of thinking in different areas. This thesis focuses on designing a game in the form of a quiz primarily for In-flight entertainment (IFE) systems, where the game is supposed to provide a multiplayer experience where the contestants can compete against each other in different categories. In addition to the research, this thesis also bridges the gap between game influences and the psychology behind them and links the areas of game design, games, psychology and decision-making. The work was divided into five different phases according to the "Design Thinking" method. The first phase, empathise, was about gaining a deeper understanding of the interaction between games, influence, psychology and decision-making. The second phase, define, focused on defining problems that could be converted into ideas and solutions in the third phase, ideate. The fourth phase, prototype, was about developing prototypes in the form of Lo-Fi, Mid-Fi and Hi-Fi which were later tested in the last and fifth phases, test. Participants got to test the game with and without data visualisation that was present in some questions in the form of bar charts. The result showed that the majority of the participants, corresponding to 66.7%, felt influenced by that graph. However, 7 out of 15 participants, corresponding to 46.7%, felt an increased sense of confidence in their answers when their answers matched the majority on the graph. While 8 out of 15 people, corresponding to 53.3%, did not experience an increase in confidence from the graph's presence. However, this does not negate the graph's potential influence on participants' decision-making process and decision-making. There are other factors that may have influenced this such as the participants' existing knowledge and their conscious decision to refrain from relying on the graph. Data visualisation has some impact on decision-making especially when it comes to areas of reduced knowledge certainty, and the degree to which individuals yield to external influences is dependent on their existing knowledge.