Cognitive Components of Flow States and Applications to Video Game Design: A Brief Framework

Abstract

The concept of flow is central to many fields including video game design, but the phenomenon is poorly understood scientifically, with no agreement on the cognitive components underlying it. In this paper, we present a cognitive science-based model of the flow experience that puts the processing of information at its core. For this, we identify key theories from the literature and propose two hypotheses about the cognitive processes?the "conditions"?underlying flow's phenomenology. We then describe the mechanisms that facilitate the fulfillment of these conditions and propose a small number of design heuristics for eliciting flow in video games. Finally, we consider some of our model's implications for the traditional interpretation of the phenomenon and discuss the need to test our framework with empirical studies.