Discomfort—the dark side of fun

Benford, Steve; Greenhalgh, Chris; Giannachi, Gabriella; Walker, Brendan; Marshall, Joe; Tennent, Paul; Rodden, Tom

Abstract

For many of us, the notion of ‘fun’ conjures up visions of experiences that are amusing, pleasant, entertaining, playful—perhaps even frivolous. Rides, games, shows and perhaps even the experience of visiting an art gallery can embody these senses of fun, providing amusing and momentary distractions from the toils of life. And yet, such experiences often have a darker side to them. Thrill rides such as roller coasters may be scary and physically demanding. Games routinely involve us in pretending to commit unspeakable acts such as butchering others. And the works we encounter in theatres and galleries may challenge, confront and even outrage us. So perhaps fun is not so frivolous after all? Maybe fun inevitably encompasses a ‘dark side’ as a vital, even necessary, part of the entertainment.

Citation

Benford, S., Greenhalgh, C., Giannachi, G., Walker, B., Marshall, J., Tennent, P., & Rodden, T. (2018). Discomfort—the dark side of fun. In M. Blythe, & A. Monk (Eds.), Funology 2: from usability to enjoyment (209-224). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-68213-6_13

• Online Publication Date: Jul 19, 2018
• Publication Date: 2018
• Deposit Date: Feb 8, 2021
• Publisher: Springer
• Pages: 209-224
• Series Title: Human-computer interaction series
• Series ISSN: 1571-5035
• Book Title: Funology 2: from usability to enjoyment
• ISBN: 9783319682129
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-68213-6_13
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/5311154
• Publisher URL: https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007%2F978-3-319-68213-6_13
• Related Public URLs: https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-319-68213-6#about