Date of Award
12-2025
Culminating Project Type
Thesis
Styleguide
apa
Degree Name
Applied Behavior Analysis: M.S.
Department
Community Psychology, Counseling and Family Therapy
College
School of Health and Human Services
First Advisor
Benjamin Witts
Second Advisor
Eunju Choi
Third Advisor
Sarah Shaefer
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.
Keywords and Subject Headings
Dungeons and Dragons, latency, manding, prompts, tabletop role-playing game
Abstract
This study examined the effects of formal versus thematic prompts on mand production during tabletop roleplaying game sessions of Dungeons and Dragons (D&D). The primary research question was whether prompt type influences players’ latency to produce correct skill-checks (i.e., mands) and how non-participating expert observers rate the social validity of these interactions. Twelve adult participants (two groups of six) played weekly sessions of D&D over Zoom for seven weeks. An alternating treatments design compared three conditions: descriptive script only (baseline), descriptive script plus formal prompt, and descriptive script plus thematic prompt. Latency to correct skill check was the dependent variable. Interobserver agreement and procedural fidelity were assessed from video recordings. Social validity was evaluated with twelve video clips (six thematic, six formal) randomly presented to eight independents who rated each clip on a Likert-type scale while viewing via Zoom with a facilitator. Results showed that formal prompts produced shorter latencies than thematic prompts or baseline across both groups. Distribution across groups and overlapping prompt comparisons revealed that thematic prompts resulted in broader interpretation but delayed responding. Findings suggest that formal prompts potentially act as repertoire-restrictive cues, improving efficiency, but limiting creativity, whereas thematic prompts promote narrative flexibility with decreased efficiency. These results inform dungeon masters and behavioral researchers about prompt selection to balance efficiency and engagement in collaborative games.
Recommended Citation
Reynolds, Sara A., "The Effects of Prompt-Type on Mand Production Within a Tabletop Roleplaying Game" (2025). Culminating Projects in Community Psychology, Counseling and Family Therapy. 122.
https://repository.stcloudstate.edu/cpcf_etds/122
