Although specific design decisions are known to support Joint Media Engagement (JME; co-play with digital media) it is unclear whether current off-the-shelf tablet experiences are designed with this in mind and whether parents and children are able to engage in JME in practice. As apps that promote artistic creation (i.e., music, drawings) fulfill many extant design recommendations for JME, we observed joint play with two artistic creation apps in a culturally and socioeconomically diverse sample of 20 United States child-mother dyads. Using interaction analysis, we found that in these ”ideal” circumstances, families used varying styles of co-engagement, with Co-Creation and Parent Coaching standing out as collaborative arrangements toward which designers and families can strive. However, there were still challenges, with parents often assuming spectator roles despite their apparent intentions. We highlight key challenges to JME plus design supports and parent strategies to help families jointly engage and create with media.

This study used both quantitative and qualitative data to assess whether a High Immersion viewing platform (virtual reality headset) elicits stronger feelings of narrative engagement and empathy compared to a Low Immersion platform (smartphone) when viewing an animated 360° video. In line with prior research, participants (N = 65) reported greater feelings of presence in the High Immersion condition compared to Low Immersion. However, immersive condition was not significantly related to narrative engagement or empathy. Interview responses revealed that participants' perceptions of their role in the film experience (i.e., Character, Observer, or Other/Not Sure) varied and were significantly related to narrative engagement. Participants who saw themselves as a Character (versus Observer) reported higher narrative engagement and empathy. Findings suggest that although a more immersive viewing platform can enhance presence during a 360° video experience, a clear understanding of viewer role is both difficult to achieve and critical to story comprehension and empathy.

While many videogames deploy a narrator as a companion or a foil for the player, the effect of narrator gender on players and player experience is understudied. The current study created a female-narrated version of the male-narrated casual game The Stanley Parable (TSP), and investigated player perceptions and behavioural responses to male versus female narrators. Participants (N=66) played TSP to reach a single ending and completed survey responses reflecting on their game experience. There were significant interactions between narrator and player gender, such that players tended to obey same-gendered narrators and to disobey opposite-gendered narrators at the first decision point in the game, controlling for prior familiarity with the game. There was a disparity between players' survey responses and their in-game decisions. Implications for the study of player experience are outlined.