Data Narrative of results from Survey
Disclaimer: Much of the information gathered over the duration of my Google Survey will not be displayed here due to the private and sensitive nature of the data. However, unidentifiable bits of data will be displayed here that cannot be traced back to any single person. Thus, no qualitative data will be used in this Data Narrative, however quantitative data may be.
Last year during the undertaking of my study on ‘The Effect of Genres of Video Games on Test-Taking Performance’ I devised a means of digitally taking a test via a simple script that was hosted on UCCs public_html folder. After I had completed the Digital Humanities Undergraduate my public_html folder was removed and my work was removed along with it subsequently.
It is due to this that I would like to create a data narrative of the results from the Google survey. The reason for this being that I can sustain this work on my website and make sure that individuals can access this data for a longer period of time than my last research project.
This data narrative contains answers from the survey that do not give away any qualitative, personal data. All of the data used in this data narrative is directly from my research project on Exergames and is entirely my own. The data is as follows:
Section 1 – Basic Questions
This question in the survey simply asks individuals how old they are. The reason for asking these demographical questions first in the survey is because studies have shown that placing the demographic questions at the beginning of a survey doesn't impact answer accuracy and actually increases response rate. (Teclaw, Price and Otasuke, 2011)
107 participants (61%) were aged 18-24 making this the biggest demographic of the survey which is, in a sense, unsurprising as it was mailed through the UCC umail service. The second highest demographic then being 25-34. This age bracket accounted for 35 participants (20%). The other 19% of the individuals in the survey ranged from 35-44, 45-54, 55-65 and 65+.
Due to the sensitive nature of the other basic questions, they will not be featured publicly on my website.
Section 2 - Physical Activity / Sedentary Behaviors
In this section we examine physical activity along with sedentary behaviors.
The first question asks individuals if they feel more sedentary and less active. The overall outcome of this question led to a majority of 120 people (68.2%) stating that they did feel less physically active as the sustained lockdowns ensued.
The next question that I could publicly share asked individuals to rate their physical activity on a scale from one to ten. One being totally sedentary and ten being extremely physically active. This question was almost answered in a bell-curve fashion except for a dip around 5 to 6.5. It is noteworthy to mention however, that most people rated themselves below 5 rather than above 5.
The next question in the survey asked individuals if they had taken up any new exercise routines or any sports/physical activities during the sustained lockdowns. The reason for asking this question was to gain an insight into what types of Exergames people would enjoy playing. It should be mentioned that 33 of the 176 participants who answered this replied with "No", they did not take up any new exercise routines and 143 participants said that 'Yes', they did. The top three most popular physical activities were walking, running and yoga, respectively.
The next question in the survey asked individuals "How long do you spend every day looking at mobile phone, television, and computer screens?" The mean average amount of screen time users consumed per day was 7.15 hours. This question was asked in order to get an estimate on the amount of screen time the individuals taking the survey were consuming. The reason for this question is due to the rising concern within the exergaming community that screen consumption is rising due to exergames and can cause irreparable damage to our eyes. It is important to note that screen consumption rose naturally regardless due to lockdown because study, work and socialization were mainly conducted via online methods.
Section 3 - Covid, Exercise and Mood
This section was originally named "Covid and Mental Health Issues" but due to my relevant degrees, I cannot discuss mental health issues at length, however I can discuss how covid and exercise affect ones mood. As such, this section deals with Covid, Exercise and Mood.
This first question in section three asked individuals "Have you found that exercising during Covid-19 has helped improved your mood?" 142 participants said 'Yes', it has. 26 participants said that '[they] have not been exercising' and 8 participants said 'No', it has not helped improve their mood.
It should be noted with this question as well, that if cross-tabulated with the question "On a scale from one to ten, how would you rate your physical activity during lockdown?" it can be seen that the overall average level of physical activity of the participants who voted 'No' and the participants who voted 'Yes' are different. Those who voted 'Yes' had an overall higher average level of physical activity than those who voted 'No'.
The next question in this section asked individuals " Do you agree or disagree with the following statement - "I would like to exercise more as I believe it would improve my general state of mental health" ". 100 participants (56.8%) said that they Strongly Agree, 50 participants said they agree, 13 said that they are neutral, 2 participants said they disagree and 11 said that they strongly disagree. This leaves a colossal 150 participants who either say they agree or strongly agree that exercise can improve their general state of mental health.
The next question in the survey asked "Have you found yourself becoming more reliant on technology (for personal use) throughout the lockdown?". This was a very simple question that was asked in order to gain an insight into how people may have become reliant on technology for personal use due to the rising concerns of exercise gaming and dependence on them as a means of staying fit.
The next question in this section asked "Do you think there could be any emotional advantages or disadvantages to Fitness Gaming as a means of staying physically active?" This question offered both qualitative and quantitative data. However, due to the private and serious nature of the qualitative data, only the quantitative will be shown for this question. The vast majority of individuals in this question said that they were either unsure or yes there were emotional advantages and disadvantages to Fitness Gaming as a means of staying active.
Section 4 - Exergaming
This section dealt with Exergaming at it's core, not emotions, moods or anything else.
This was an extremely simple question, just asking if participants had heard of exergaming or fitness gaming before taking the survey. 88 said 'Yes and 88 said 'No', splitting the results 50/50 evenly.
The next question asked individuals "What activities would you like to play on an Exergaming system, if possible?". This was a follow up to the question in section two which asked individuals "Have you taken up any new exercise routines or any sports/physical activities during the sustained lockdowns?". There wasn't much significant overlap between these two questions if cross-compared. However, there seems to be a huge market for sports games on the exergaming systems.
The next question asked what device the participant would rather use to access their exergames, a mobile phone, a computer/laptop or 'either is fine'. 88 (50%) participants said that either is fine, 57 (32.4%) participants said that they would rather use a computer/laptop and 31 (17.6%) participants said that they would rather use a mobile phone.
The final question asked individuals "Would you ever consider using an Exergames system, even after Covid-19 lockdowns have ended?". 131 participants said 'Yes' they would consider it, and 45 participants said that 'No' they would not. It is of interest to note within this question that 46% of the participants who voted 'No' were above the age of 24. Not only this, but 37% of the participants who voted 'Yes' were above the age of 24. This could potentially mean that there is a slight age bias within the realm of exergaming in that it appeals to younger generations more. This could potentially be used as direction for future research into exergaming.
References
O'Reilly Butler, R., 2021. The Social Impacts of Exergaming during the Covid-19 Pandemic.
Teclaw, R., Price, M. and Osatuke, K., 2011. Demographic Question Placement: Effect on Item Response Rates and Means of a Veterans Health Administration Survey. Journal of Business and Psychology, 27(3), pp.281-290.
