Many shades of play: Performance anxiety in tabletop gaming

Many millennials are playing tabletop games, a surprising shift from the popularity of digital entertainment, and this research study looked at social anxiety in the context of tabletop and role-playing game play. Little previous research has explored the situations and social contexts in which social anxiety manifests among millennials. This inquiry focused on two research questions: What types of anxieties manifest during tabletop and role-playing game play, and why do they manifest in those contexts? Through interviewing millennials who participate in these games on a regular, frequent basis, the study found that anxiety is a notable factor during play. Through analysis of respondents’ comments during interviews, various causes of anxiety were found. When it came to board game players, the rules of the game affected anxiety levels, playing against a competitive player increased anxiety, feeling incompetent/unskilled increased affected anxiety, being a female game player caused anxiety-ridden situations, and tensions outside of the world of the game increased anxiety. A second sample of participants interviewed focused on anxiety during role-playing games. Through the analysis of these comments during interviews, feeling incompetent/unskilled and stresses while playing a character caused an increase in anxiety. This investigative study has only cracked the surface, and more research is needed to fully understand this social phenomenon.