Interactive play objects and the effects of open-ended play on social interaction and fun

Abstract

This paper describes a study that examines the influence of openended play in interactive play objects on social interaction and fun experience of children. We developed a prototype to examine whether children enjoy playing with simple intelligent objects. Children between 7 and 11 years old were asked to play with the objects in a free-play and pre-set game session. The study shows that children create a wide variety of games and practice many social skills when negotiating the rules of various games. Overall, children felt playing with the objects in the free-play sessions was more fun than in the pre-set sessions. The insights will be used to design the next version of our play concept.