Research on Alleviating Children's Nighttime Fear Using a Digital Game

Area of Science:

• Child Psychology
• Game Design
• Digital Therapeutics

Background:

• Nighttime fear is a prevalent issue affecting children's emotional well-being and development.
• Digital games show potential in emotional regulation for children.
• Existing research lacks specific game design principles for alleviating childhood nighttime fears.

Purpose of the Study:

• To establish design principles for a digital game aimed at reducing children's nighttime fears.
• To develop a game prototype based on parental and child input.
• To experimentally evaluate the effectiveness of the digital game in alleviating nighttime fears.

Main Methods:

• A survey of children and parents informed the game's design principles.
• A quasi-experimental design with non-randomized samples was employed.
• The Koala Fear Questionnaire (KFQ) assessed fear levels before and after game intervention.

Main Results:

• Children in the experimental group (EG) showed a significant reduction in fear related to game-specific objects.
• The digital game intervention led to a notable decrease in nighttime fears for some children with moderate fear.
• The control group (CG) did not receive the game intervention, serving as a baseline.

Conclusions:

• Digital games offer a promising avenue for alleviating children's nighttime fears.
• Game-based interventions can be effective tools in managing childhood emotional distress.
• Further research is warranted to explore the broader application of digital games in pediatric mental health.