534 16 2738 2 9737 document 2738 Player Artefacts.zip application/zip 9e4d7f76f466ea28264ad5b13b613011 MD5 232332638 2026-05-06 11:34:05 https://bordar.bournemouth.ac.uk/534/1/Player%20Artefacts.zip 534 1 1 application/zip archive en public cc_by_nd_4

Player Artefacts.zip

full_archive archive 12018 disk0/00/00/05/34 2026-05-20 10:12:49 2026-05-20 10:13:27 2026-05-20 10:12:49 data_collection show Llewellyn Ruth llewellyn_ruth@outlook.com pub fac_mst Screenshots, videogames, Nintendo Player screenshots were collected from participants who had engaged with Animal Crossing: New Horizons during periods of COVID-19 social restrictions. These artefacts consisted primarily of screenshots taken within the game, which participants selected as representations of meaningful moments, spaces, or activities from their gameplay. This approach allowed participants to highlight aspects of their in-game environments that they felt were significant, while also providing visual material that complemented the interview discussions. The artefacts focused on elements such as island design, interactions with other players, and spaces created for social or personal expression. These visual materials were analysed alongside the interview data using a psychocultural framework, drawing on psychoanalytic concepts to explore how players used the game environment to construct meaningful spaces, express identity, and manage emotional experience during a period characterised by uncertainty and social isolation. 2026 published Bournemouth University 10.18746/bmth.data.00000534 Image bordar@bournemouth.ac.uk Researcher Llewellyn Ruth llewellyn_ruth@outlook.com thesis submitted Bournemouth University As part of the data collection process, participants were invited to submit up to ten screenshots from their Animal Crossing: New Horizons gameplay. These screenshots were selected by participants to represent moments, spaces, or activities within the game that they considered meaningful or significant to their experience. This approach allowed participants to guide the visual material included in the study and provided additional context for the interview discussions. The screenshots therefore functioned as player artefacts, offering insight into how participants designed and used their islands, interacted with others, and engaged with the game environment during the period of social restriction. All participants were anonymised to protect confidentiality. During transcription, identifying information was anonymised, and each participant was assigned a player number, which is used throughout the thesis when referring to interview and screenshot material. Screenshots and transcripts were stored securely and were accessible only to the researcher. These measures ensured that participants could not be identified while accurately representing their experiences of gameplay within the analysis. Furthermore, screenshots have been tightly cropped to ensure player islands remain anonymous due to topography. 2023-05-15 2023-12-17