< Back Dr Ozan Vardal University of York iGGi Alum Ozan studied undergraduate psychology at the University of Groningen, and holds a master's degree in Performance Psychology from the University of Edinburgh, where he wrote theses on the dynamics of psychological momentum in sport competition and the decision-making of expert applied psychologists respectively. He has long been fascinated with the psychological mechanisms underpinning complex skills, owing to his own background as a classically trained musician and his previous work as a performance psychology consultant with competitive athletes. His primary research interests involve the behavioural and neural factors surrounding human learning and skilled performance. A description of Ozan's research: Ozan views games as behaviourally rich environments for the study of complex skills and human learning. The competitive and immersive nature of games encourages millions of players to develop profound skill over hours, days, and even years of practice. Ozan’s work takes advantage of large data repositories generated by such players to study how different patterns of practice result in differences in learning outcomes. He also uses experimental methods in his work, and is currently using neuroimaging methods (MEG) and modelling techniques to identify how shifts between different behavioural and neural states affect performance as people play Tetris. By using games as a vehicle to study psychology, Ozan aims to develop scalable solutions to studying human learning. He hopes for a future where the science of learning is sufficiently advanced, such that (artificial) trainers can recommend optimised practice schedules for motivated learners, in any performance domain. Please note: Updating of profile text in progress Email ov525@york.ac.uk Website LinkedIn Mastodon BlueSky GitHub Other Link Featured Publication(s): Mind the gap: Distributed practice enhances performance in a MOBA game Themes Design & Development Esports Game Data - Previous Next

< Back Dr Carlos Gonzalez Diaz University of York iGGi Alum Carlos is finishing his PhD at the University of York. He holds an MSc in Serious Games at the University of Skövde (Sweden) and a BSc in Software Engineering (Spain). He is been closely connected with industry throughout his PhD, having worked in the last years for Microsoft Research, Sony Interactive Entertainment R&D, Musemio Ltd R&D and Goldsmiths, UoL; as well as done consulting for tech companies such as Unity Technologies. A description of Carlos' research: The purpose of my PhD research is to advance game technologies by democratising the use of ML techniques among non-experts through innovative tools and plugins for game engines. I developed ML specific visual scritping languages and used mixed-methods research approaches to understand how to better support developers in creating VR interactions and the challenges behind human-AI interaction. I had several technical jobs throughout my PhD, as my expertise is highly applicable in both industry and academia. Thanks to the broad range of expertise that I gathered through many years of industrial work and academic study, I can tackle the challenges emerging from the inter-disciplinary nature of modern work: where user psychology, immersive technology and artificial intelligence intersect. Please refer to my website for completely up-to-date information regarding publications. Feel free to reach out if you want more information or want to chat about my/your work. I am looking for positions starting on February 2023 onwards. Email carlos.gonzalezdiaz@york.ac.uk Website LinkedIn Mastodon BlueSky GitHub Other Link Supervisor(s): Prof. Sebastian Deterding Featured Publication(s): Prototyping by Moving for Virtual Reality Embodied, in-medium design of VR game motion controls using interactive supervised learning Automatic Game Tuning for Strategic Diversity Programming by Moving: Interactive Machine Learning for Embodied Interaction Design InteractML: Node Based Tool to Empower Artists and Dancers in using Interactive Machine Learning for Designing Movement Interaction Movement interaction design for immersive media using interactive machine learning Using Machine Learning to Design Movement Interaction in Virtual Reality Interactive machine learning for more expressive game interactions Making Space for Social Time: Supporting Conversational Transitions Before, During, and After Video Meetings InteractML: Making machine learning accessible for creative practitioners working with movement interaction in immersive media Interactive Machine Learning for Embodied Interaction Design: A tool and methodology Bodystorming in SocialVR to Support Collaborative Embodied Ideation Themes Creative Computing Design & Development Game AI Immersive Technology https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=taVry9IQUjE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kkKU3MyBspM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WHiPav2l5gA Previous Next

< Back How Do We Engage Children and Young People in the Design and Development Of Mental Health Games Link Author(s) MJ Saiger Abstract More info TBA Link

< Back Characterization and classification of adherent cells in monolayer culture using automated tracking and evolutionary algorithms Link Author(s) Z Zhang, M Bedder, SL Smith, D Walker, S Shabir, J Southgate Abstract More info TBA Link

< Back Applied Games How might we design and use games to support health, learning, work, and conduct scientific research? Project areas include: Games for therapy and diagnosis, particularly in mental health Analysis of game behaviours for research into human psychology Games for understanding the impact of behaviours on the environment << Previous Theme page Next Theme page >> iGGi >>> People <<< relevant to this Theme: Michael Aichmüller iGGi Alum Game AI, Applied Games Read More Prof. Nick Bryan-Kinns Supervisor Applied Games, Creative Computing, Game Audio, Player Research Read More Dr Ignacio Castro Supervisor Game AI, Applied Games, Player Research, Game Data Read More Dr Joe Cutting iGGi Alum + Supervisor Player Research, Applied Games, Design & Development Read More Nirit Binyamini Ben Meir iGGi PG Researcher Available for post-PhD position Applied Games, Design & Development, Creative Computing Read More Prof. Paul Cairns Supervisor Applied Games, Player Research, Accessibility, Game Data Read More Dr Tara Collingwoode-Williams iGGi Alum Player Research, Applied Games Read More Rory Davidson iGGi PG Researcher Available for post-PhD position Player Research, Applied Games, Design & Development Read More Dr Anna Bramwell-Dicks Supervisor Game Audio, Player Research, Design & Development, Applied Games, Accessibility Read More Steph Carter iGGi PG Researcher Available for post-PhD position Applied Games, Design & Development, Player Research, Accessibility, Game Data Read More Prof. Peter Cowling Supervisor Game AI, Applied Games, Design & Development Read More Dr Alena Denisova Supervisor Applied Games, Player Research, Design & Development Read More Load More iGGi People working in this Theme iGGi >>> Publications <<< relevant to this Theme: POD/Post-anthropocentric design: World Oceans Day 2022 D Barrios-O'Neill, C Jarvis, N Binyamini Ben Meir, C Ramirez-Figueroa Nirit Binyamini Ben Meir View Details Beyond the Spotlight: Co-Designing AI for Theatre Audience Communication A Pedrassoli Chitayat, S Carter, BA Robertson, J Hook Proceedings of the 2026 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems Dr Alan Pedrassoli Chitayat Steph Carter View Details Post-anthropocentric design lab (PADLab). D Barrios-O'Neill, M Pauzner, O Kutok, O Stadnuk, N Binyamini Ben Meir, ... Nirit Binyamini Ben Meir View Details Exploring the player experience of people with persistent low mood L Helsby University of York, 2025 Dr Laura Helsby View Details "SAM"-School Attachment Monitor for the Assessment of Attachment in Children aged 4-8 MJ Saiger, Y Aleid, H Minnis, A Vinciarelli, S Brewster Proceedings of the 24th Interaction Design and Children, 752-756, 2025 Dr Michael Saiger View Details Domestic Cultures of Plant Care: A Moss Terrarium Probe N. Binyamini Ben-Meir, P.G.T. Healey, S. Deterding Designing Interactive Systems Conference (DIS '25), 05-09 July 2025, Funchal, Portugal. ACM, New York, NY, USA 19 Pages Nirit Binyamini Ben Meir View Details Load More iGGi Publications for this Theme Previous Next

< Back The Graph Cut Kernel for Ranked Data Link Author(s) M Conserva, MP Deisenroth, KSS Kumar Abstract More info TBA Link

< Back The Effects of a Soundtrack on Board Game Player Experience Link Author(s) T Farkas, A Denisova, S Wiseman, R Fiebrink Abstract More info TBA Link

< Back Movement interaction design for immersive media using interactive machine learning Link Author(s) N Plant, R Gibson, C Gonzalez Diaz, B Martelli, M Zbyszyński, R Fiebrink, ... Abstract More info TBA Link

< Back 'Did you hear that?' Learning to play video games from audio cues Link Author(s) RD Gaina, M Stephenson Abstract More info TBA Link

< Back Making Connections: Neurodevelopmental Changes in Brain Connectivity after Adverse Experiences in Early Adolescence Link Author(s) A Pollmann, R Sasso, K Bates, D Fuhrmann Abstract More info TBA Link

< Back Registered Report Evidence Suggests No Relationship Between Objectively Tracked Video Game Playtime and Well-Being Over 3 Months Link Author(s) N Ballou, CJR Sewall, J Ratcliffe, D Zendle, L Tokarchuk, S Deterding Abstract More info TBA Link

< Back Steph Carter University of York iGGi PG Researcher Available for post-PhD position Steph is an interdisciplinary researcher whose work spans psycholinguistics, HCI and game design. Their research investigates how game design can be used improve the participant experience in experimental tasks for second language acquisition research. They are also interested in research on accessibility in games, disability representation, games with a purpose, and have published work examining how AI/ML can be used to support professional roles in the creative industries. Outside of academia, Steph enjoys taking part in game jams, making pixel art and playing with their cats. Steph’s project explores how game design can improve participants’ experiences in Second Language Acquisition experiments while still enabling the collection of high quality, controlled data. Although games and gamification are increasingly used in educational contexts, particularly for language learning, their potential in experimental design for SLA research remains underexplored. This project investigates how incorporating game elements into psycholinguistic tasks can impact the participant experience and maintain data quality. The findings aim to inform the design and development of gamified data collection tools for both language learning and cognitive research, while also providing some practical guidance for researchers interested in gamifying their experimental methods. Email steph.carter@york.ac.uk Website LinkedIn Mastodon BlueSky GitHub Other Link Supervisor(s): Dr Abi Evans Featured Publication(s): Beyond the Spotlight: Co-Designing AI for Theatre Audience Communication Themes Accessibility Applied Games Design & Development Game Data Player Research - Previous Next