Infiniteams Pretest

Leadership in MMORPGs
Informed Consent

Welcome!

You are being asked to participate in a research project conducted by Timothy Lisk in the School of Behavioral and Organizational Sciences, Claremont Graduate University (CGU) and Claremont McKenna College, Kravis Leadership Institute (KLI). You are being asked because you play a Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game and are at least 18 years old.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study is to examine leader behavior in virtual teams.

PARTICIPATION: You will be asked to complete a pretest survey asking about your style of leadership and some aspects of your leadership experience in your guild/corporation. We expect the pretest to take about 5-10 minutes of your time. Afterward, you will be matched with other participants to create teams of 5 that will then take part in a 20 minute multiplayer survival simulation. After the experiment, you will be asked to complete a posttest about your team leader. The posttest should take about 5 minutes of your time. Altogether, we expect this experiment to take about 35-40 minutes of your time.

RISKS & BENEFITS: The potential risks associated with this study include the potential discovery that you aren’t as active a leader as you thought you were or that you or your team does not work as well together as you thought. Additional risks associated with this study are minimal cartoon violence and potential discomfort if you or someone you know has ever been involved in an extreme survival situation (the survival simulation takes place just after your team has crash landed on an island). This project may provide you with teamwork practice and insight. We expect this research to benefit science, organizations, and players by better explaining the links between leader behavior and success in virtual teams. Better understanding of virtual teams can help organizations operate more effeciently and provide employees with more freedom regarding when, where, and how they work.

VOLUNTARY PARTICIPATION: You may receive game currency as compensation for your participation. There will be one prize (25 million EVE isk) awarded to the team that progresses the furthest through the simulation and one randomly awarded prize (25 million EVE isk). The odds of winning the lottery prize depend on how many teams complete the experiment (approximately 1 in 50). On the off chance the "best" team is also picked for the lottery prize, there will be a redraw.

VOLUNTARY PARTICIPATION: Please understand that participation is completely voluntary. Your decision whether or not to participate will in no way affect your current or future relationship with CGU or its faculty, students, or staff, or Kravis Leadership Institute. You have the right to withdraw from the research at any time without penalty. You also have the right to refuse to answer any question(s) for any reason, without penalty.

CONFIDENTIALITY: Your individual privacy will be maintained in all publications or presentations resulting from this study. Your email address is collected to coordinate team sessions and link your pre/post test responses. In order to preserve the confidentiality of your responses, your email address will be deleted once your responses are collected. Other than your email address, no personally identifying information will be collected. Your email address will not be shared/sold.

If you have any questions or would like additional information about this research, please contact me at [email protected]. You can also contact my research advisor, Ron Riggio, at [email protected]. The CGU Institutional Review Board, which is administered through the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs (ORSP), has approved this project. You may also contact ORSP at (909) 607-9406 with any questions.

You are welcome to print a copy of this consent page.

Click "Continue" only if you are 18 or older and agree to participate in this study.

Most experimental sessions will take place during weekends and weekday early evenings (Pacific Time). If you have a preferred day/time when you can take part in the 20 minute experimental session, please let us know (include the time zone if not Pacific Time!)

What is your corp name? (please be as accurate as possible -- leave blank if you are not in a guild/corp)

What is your corp ticker/abbreviation? (please be as accurate as possible -- leave blank for none)

What is your email address? (this is how you will be assigned to your team and given your experimental instructions -- it will NOT be shared and will be DELETED as soon as the experiment is finished)

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For each of the following statements, please select the response that most closely matches you.

	Strongly Disagree	Disagree	Neither Agree nor Disagree	Agree	Strongly Agree
Video games allow me to interact with other players.	Strongly Disagree	Disagree	Neither Agree nor Disagree	Agree	Strongly Agree

I am good at video games.	Strongly Disagree	Disagree	Neither Agree nor Disagree	Agree	Strongly Agree

When I play video games with my friends, I usually win.	Strongly Disagree	Disagree	Neither Agree nor Disagree	Agree	Strongly Agree

At any time in your life, what is the maximum number of hours per week you have spent using the following software:

	None	Less than 5	5-10	10-15	More than 15
Simulation games (Sim City / Rollercoaster Tycoon / Flight Simulator / The Sims)	None	Less than 5	5-10	10-15	More than 15

Strategy games (Civilization / Starcraft)	None	Less than 5	5-10	10-15	More than 15

Action / shooter / platform games (Halo, Grand Theft Auto, Counterstrike, Team Fortress, Legend of Zelda, Metroid)	None	Less than 5	5-10	10-15	More than 15

Sports / racing (Madden / Gran Turismo / Mario Kart / Need for Speed)	None	Less than 5	5-10	10-15	More than 15

Fighting games (Super Smash Brothers, Dead or Alive)	None	Less than 5	5-10	10-15	More than 15

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Approximately how many members are there in your alliance? (enter 0 or leave blank if you are not in an alliance)

Approximately how many members are there in your corp? (enter 0 or leave blank if you are not in a corp)

Please select the choice that best describes your corp leadership:

One leader makes the final decisions

A group of leaders makes the final decisions

No leader(s) – all decisions are made by the corp (consensus or majority rule)

DOES NOT APPLY – I am not in a corp

Please select the choice that best describes your corp role:

I am the only top level leader, aka CEO (I have the authority to make final decisions)

I am one of the top level leaders, aka Board of Directors (we have the authority to make final decisions)

I am a middle level leader, aka Officer (I/we have more authority than basic members and can make some decisions)

I am not a leader in my corp

DOES NOT APPLY – I am not in a corp

How many subordinates do you have in your corp? (enter 0 or leave blank if you have no subordinates)

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Age

Employment (select all that currently apply):

I work full time

I work part time

I am a full time student

I am a part time student

I am retired

I am unemployed

At work?

In school?

Playing a MMORPG?

Tip: This is the last page of the pretest!

Answer with EVE in mind

These questions give you a chance to describe your EVE Online leadership style as you perceive it. Judge how frequently each statement fits you. Do the best you can to answer each question, even if it seems irrelevant. The word “others” generally refers to your fellow corp members (or other player in the game, if you're not in a corp). If you are a member of an alliance, please focus on your corp.

Focus only on your activities in EVE Online when you answer these questions.

	Not at all	Once in a while	Sometimes	Fairly often	Frequently, if not always
I specify the importance of having a strong sense of purpose	Not at all	Once in a while	Sometimes	Fairly often	Frequently, if not always

I re-examine critical assumptions to question whether they are appropriate	Not at all	Once in a while	Sometimes	Fairly often	Frequently, if not always

I provide others with assistance in exchange for their efforts	Not at all	Once in a while	Sometimes	Fairly often	Frequently, if not always

I fail to interfere until problems become serious	Not at all	Once in a while	Sometimes	Fairly often	Frequently, if not always

I focus attention on irregularities, mistakes, exceptions, and deviations from standards	Not at all	Once in a while	Sometimes	Fairly often	Frequently, if not always

I talk about my most important values and beliefs	Not at all	Once in a while	Sometimes	Fairly often	Frequently, if not always

I talk optimistically about the future	Not at all	Once in a while	Sometimes	Fairly often	Frequently, if not always

I spend time teaching and coaching	Not at all	Once in a while	Sometimes	Fairly often	Frequently, if not always

I talk enthusiastically about what needs to be accomplished	Not at all	Once in a while	Sometimes	Fairly often	Frequently, if not always

I wait for things to go wrong before taking action	Not at all	Once in a while	Sometimes	Fairly often	Frequently, if not always

	Not at all	Once in a while	Sometimes	Fairly often	Frequently, if not always
I discuss in specific terms who is responsible for achieving specific tasks	Not at all	Once in a while	Sometimes	Fairly often	Frequently, if not always

I instill pride in others for being associated with me	Not at all	Once in a while	Sometimes	Fairly often	Frequently, if not always

I seek differing perspectives when solving problems	Not at all	Once in a while	Sometimes	Fairly often	Frequently, if not always

I make clear what one can expect to receive when goals are achieved	Not at all	Once in a while	Sometimes	Fairly often	Frequently, if not always

I show that I am a firm believer in “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”	Not at all	Once in a while	Sometimes	Fairly often	Frequently, if not always

I go beyond self-interest for the good of the group	Not at all	Once in a while	Sometimes	Fairly often	Frequently, if not always

	Not at all	Once in a while	Sometimes	Fairly often	Frequently, if not always
I direct my attention toward failures to meet standards	Not at all	Once in a while	Sometimes	Fairly often	Frequently, if not always

I consider an individual as having different needs, abilities, and aspirations from others	Not at all	Once in a while	Sometimes	Fairly often	Frequently, if not always

I get others to look at problems from many different angles	Not at all	Once in a while	Sometimes	Fairly often	Frequently, if not always

I help others to develop their strengths	Not at all	Once in a while	Sometimes	Fairly often	Frequently, if not always

I suggest new ways of looking at how to complete assignments	Not at all	Once in a while	Sometimes	Fairly often	Frequently, if not always

I articulate a compelling vision of the future	Not at all	Once in a while	Sometimes	Fairly often	Frequently, if not always

I display a sense of power and confidence	Not at all	Once in a while	Sometimes	Fairly often	Frequently, if not always

I keep track of all mistakes	Not at all	Once in a while	Sometimes	Fairly often	Frequently, if not always

I concentrate my full attention on dealing with mistakes, complaints, and failures	Not at all	Once in a while	Sometimes	Fairly often	Frequently, if not always

I consider the moral and ethical consequences of decisions	Not at all	Once in a while	Sometimes	Fairly often	Frequently, if not always

	Not at all	Once in a while	Sometimes	Fairly often	Frequently, if not always
I demonstrate that problems must become chronic before I take action	Not at all	Once in a while	Sometimes	Fairly often	Frequently, if not always

I act in ways that build others’ respect for me	Not at all	Once in a while	Sometimes	Fairly often	Frequently, if not always

I treat others as individuals rather than just a member of the group	Not at all	Once in a while	Sometimes	Fairly often	Frequently, if not always

I emphasize the importance of having a collective sense of mission	Not at all	Once in a while	Sometimes	Fairly often	Frequently, if not always

I express satisfaction when others meet expectations	Not at all	Once in a while	Sometimes	Fairly often	Frequently, if not always

I express confidence that goals will be achieved	Not at all	Once in a while	Sometimes	Fairly often	Frequently, if not always

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Tip: This is the last page of the pretest!

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