Games and Life Lab
Games as a Reflection of Life
Graduate School of Culture Technology, Korea Advanced Institute of Science & Technology (KAIST)
Research Focus
1
Transformative Player Experience and Development
Lifespan Developmental Psychology · Cognitive and Affective Processes · Behavioural Change · Identity and Meaning-Making · Human–Game Interaction · Player Wellbeing
2
Co-Creative and Inclusive Game Communities
Participatory Design · Social and Cultural Dynamics · Collective Intelligence · Community Resilience · Collaboration and Leadership · Value Co-Construction
3
Future-Oriented and Responsible Game Technologies
Socio-Technical Systems · Human–AI Collaboration · Immersive and Embodied Interfaces · Ethics and Governance · Innovation Ecosystems · Technology Futures
Games and Life Lab conducts in-depth research on how players engage with digital games and the psychological processes that underpin these experiences.
Rather than treating games as a source of entertainment alone, we examine how they function as developmental environments where individuals construct meaning, negotiate identities, and form social relations. We also study how communities emerge and are sustained through collaborative and participatory practices within and around games. Finally, we investigate how emerging technologies are reshaping game experiences and explore ways to harness them responsibly to generate positive individual and societal outcomes.
Who are we?
We are researchers committed to examining the space of possibility that emerges at the intersection of game systems and lived reality.
We are researchers deeply engaged with the transformative potential that emerges where digital game worlds and everyday life converge.
We view games as an extended ecological environment where human behavior transforms. Our goal is to understand the rules and order governing the changes in our minds, behaviors, societies, and cultures that arise from the interaction between games and humans.
Our theoretical framework for understanding player behavior change is rooted in lifespan developmental psychology. We also draw upon game studies to comprehend the evolving complexity of games and gaming experiences as they become a prominent life medium. Furthermore, we utilize participatory design methodologies to create services that address the diverse needs of players, designers, and communities.
For us, the daily integration of research, social participation, and creating practical application is a playground, a creative hub, and a research ground that constantly awakens new insights.
Games as a Reflection of Life
Games allow us to relive meaningful memories and to step into unfamiliar worlds. In playing, we experience joy, wonder, and frustration, and encounter fundamental questions: Who am I? How do I relate to others? How do I understand and act within a new system of rules and values?
At the intersection of the game world and everyday life, players make meaningful choices that reveal latent desires and shape personal and social values. Games operate as experimental spaces where alternative value systems are tested and new forms of interaction emerge.
From this perspective, digital games function as developmental environments that support psychological and societal change. By analyzing the unique experiences produced through human–game interaction, and by designing new ones, we can generate actionable blueprints for more inclusive and transformative futures.
What are Games?
Games reflect the dynamics of our everyday lives. In play we laugh, struggle, compete, collaborate, imagine, and create together with others.
Where we are heading?
Games and Life Lab generates scientific knowledge to design sustainable game experiences and communities in which players can grow together.
We pursue this goal by combining deep insights into human development with the responsible integration of emerging technologies. Ultimately, our work aims to support a future in which games enhance individual wellbeing, foster collective flourishing, and expand human potential.