Browsing by Author "Zhang-Kennedy, Leah"

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Computer-based Deceptive Game Design in Commercial Virtual Reality Games: A Preliminary Investigation
(Association for Computing Machinery, 2024-10-14) Hadan, Hilda; Zhang-Kennedy, Leah; Nacke, Lennart
As Virtual Reality (VR) games become more popular, it is crucial to understand how deceptive game design patterns manifest and impact player experiences in this emerging medium. Our study sheds light on the presence and effects of manipulative design techniques in commercial VR games compared to a traditional computer game. We conducted an autoethnography study and developed a VR Deceptive Game Design Assessment Guide based on a critical literature review. Using our guide, we compared how deceptive patterns in a popular computer game are different from two commercial VR titles. While VR’s technological constraints, such as battery life and limited temporal manipulation, VR’s unique sensory immersion amplified the impact of emotional and sensory deception. Current VR games showed similar but evolved forms of deceptive design compared to the computer game. We forecast more sophisticated player manipulation as VR technology advances. Our findings contribute to a better understanding of how deceptive game design persists and escalates in VR. We highlight the urgent need to develop ethical design guidelines for the rapidly advancing VR games industry.
Culture Clash: When Deceptive Design Meets Diverse Player Expectations
(Association for Computing Machinery, 2024-10-14) Hadan, Hilda; Sgandurra, Sabrina; Zhang-Kennedy, Leah; Nacke, Lennart
Deceptive game designs that manipulate players are increasingly common in the gaming industry, but the impact on players is not well studied. While studies have revealed player frustration, there is a gap in understanding how cultural attributes affect the impact of deceptive design in games. This paper proposes a new research direction on the connection between the representation of culture in games and player response to deceptive designs. We believe that understanding the interplay between cultural attributes and deceptive design can inform the creation of games that are ethical and entertaining for players around the globe.
Mitigating Privacy Harms from Deceptive Design in Virtual Reality
(University of Waterloo, 2025-03-15) Hadan, Hilda; Zhang-Kennedy, Leah; Nacke, Lennart E.
This report was prepared as a final project report in response to the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada Contributions Program 2024-25. This research investigates deceptive design in Virtual Reality (VR) environments and its impact on user privacy. The research team at the University of Waterloo conducted an autoethnographic evaluation of 12 top-rated VR applications to analyze deceptive design patterns in their privacy communication and interaction mechanisms. The findings reveal 14 distinct deceptive design patterns and demonstrate how deceptive tactics in traditional web and mobile environments are being adapted to immersive environments. While many of these patterns still heavily rely on 2D interfaces elements, VR’s spatial, immersive, and multi-sensory features amplify their impact and increased the privacy risks for users. The VR applications’ convoluted privacy policies and consent mechanisms further hinder user comprehension on the data practices. Through the evaluation, the team also identified 7 exemplary privacy-enhancing design strategies, which can serve as a foundation for improved implementation of privacy mechanisms in VR environments. To assess user perceptions of these deceptive design patterns, the team surveyed 424 users of the selected VR applications. The findings indicate that while users felt the manipulative influences and expressed discomfort, they often resign themselves to accepting privacyinvasive options and viewing such design as “typical” or “inevitable” across both VR and nonVR platforms. Their repetitive exposure to such design in mobile and web environments fostered a false sense of normalcy, and eroded user resistance to manipulation. This research provides valuable insights for VR developers, designers, policymakers, and researchers on creating privacy-preserving VR experiences and developing clearer, more ethical privacy policies in this rapidly evolving field.
The great AI witch hunt: Reviewers’ perception and (Mis)conception of generative AI in research writing
(Computers in Human Behavior: Artificial Humans, 2024-10-24) Hadan, Hilda; Derrick, Wang; Mogavi, Reza Hadi; Tu, Joseph; Zhang-Kennedy, Leah; Nacke, Lennart
Generative AI (GenAI) use in research writing is growing fast. However, it is unclear how peer reviewers recognize or misjudge AI-augmented manuscripts. To investigate the impact of AI-augmented writing on peer reviews, we conducted a snippet-based online survey with 17 peer reviewers from top-tier HCI conferences. Our findings indicate that while AI-augmented writing improves readability, language diversity, and informativeness, it often lacks research details and reflective insights from authors. Reviewers consistently struggled to distinguish between human and AI-augmented writing but their judgements remained consistent. They noted the loss of a “human touch” and subjective expressions in AI-augmented writing. Based on our findings, we advocate for reviewer guidelines that promote impartial evaluations of submissions, regardless of any personal biases towards GenAI. The quality of the research itself should remain a priority in reviews, regardless of any preconceived notions about the tools used to create it. We emphasize that researchers must maintain their authorship and control over the writing process, even when using GenAI's assistance.