Browsing by Author "Säynevirta, Heidi"

Objectives. The objective of this study is to research digital games in everyday life, during COVID-19-epidemic and distance learning period in Finland during spring 2020. The purpose is to find out what significances students give to digital games in their daily lives, and how the distance schooling affected the interviewees' playing. The starting point of the study is a syn-thesis built from previous games studies and everyday life research, which seeks to describe and define digital games and everyday life before state of emergency, considering the possi-ble effects they might have. The issue is current as the COVID-19 epidemic brings new challenges to the daily routines both in school and family life, and no significant research is yet available on the changed daily life. Methods. The study was conducted as a two-day game diary and as a thematic interview for eight fifth-graders. Qualitative data was analyzed by a phenomenographic analysis method. Results and conclusions. The significances of playing digital games in everyday life during distance schooling can be themed on 4 categories: Interaction, experiences of accomplishment, leisure, and challenging self. When looking at how playing digital games has changed during COVID-19 and distance schooling, interaction, leisure, and self challenging have also been consciously pursued goals.