Perception of Young Adults on Online Games: Implications for Higher Education

The purpose of this study is to identify and categorize the perceptions of young adults before we allocate the resources to design, develop, and implement digital game-based learning in higher education institutions in Taiwan. Q-methodology was conducted for this study because it is a quantitative analysis of subjective data. Thirty young adults from a university were surveyed and asked to rank-order 30 statements about online games. Factor analysis was used to identify the number of factors and the correlation study attempts to identify the individuals who are highly correlated with one another in each specific factor. The data were processed and analyzed following the usual steps of Q-methodology by using the PQMethod software. Three operant factor types (i.e. New media resisters, Pajamasocializers, and Game value resisters) were identified. The findings of this study can help higher education institutions to be aware of the negative and positive attitudes toward online gaming. [PUBLICATION ABSTRACT]