The LEGO Group and UNICEF are joining forces to launch a new toolbox for game designers to center kids’ wellbeing in the making of digital games.
The Responsible Innovation in Technology for Children (RITEC) Design Toolbox is based on the findings of research lef by UNICEF Innocenti Global Office of Research and Foresight including five research institutions and more than 750 kids from around the world.
While the online world offers endless possibilities for children, we understand that it can also raise concerns for parents. In an era where children are increasingly engaging with digital technologies, the need for robust guidelines to protect their well-being has never been more important. We know that the digital games industry is grappling with the challenges of understanding how best to design digital technology so that it fosters children’s well-being. We remain committed to creating safe and enriching digital environments for children and so are pleased that the RITEC Design Toolbox is freely available to everyone. We’re calling on gaming companies and businesses to make this a priority when creating digital play experiences.”
The RITEC Design Toolbox includes an interactive card deck of game design features, printable posters, quotes and examples from kids, a shared vocabulary for game designers to use when discussing kids’ wellbeing, a summary for executives highlighting the business case of designing for wellbeing, and a list of important factors in design for wellbeing, including autonomy; competence; emotional regulation; relationships; creativity; identities; diversity, equity, and inclusion; and safety and security.
“While children will definitely benefit from designers and creatives integrating this toolkit into their work, I hope the RITEC-8 work also demonstrates the positive features of digital play to parents, teachers, and adults on the fence,” says Corinne Brenner, Director of Learning at Killer Snails, one of the learning companies involved in the RITEC research project. “Digital play can be hugely beneficial to children when experiences are well-designed.”
The research led by UNICEF shows that digital play experiences can support children’s well-being, if they are designed right. The RITEC Design Toolbox can make it easier for game designers to implement the findings of this research into their work and to design digital play experiences to support children’s well-being.”
The RITEC Design toolbox is the end result of a three-year study conducted by UNICEF with Western Sydney University, the University of Sheffield, New York University, City University New York, and the Queensland University of Technology.
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