Tabletop role-playing games and board games.
In 2024, Hasbro.com reported that Dungeons & Dragons celebrated its 50th anniversaryth birthday and has reached over 50 million fans worldwide. The use of D&D, along with other tabletop role-playing games (TTRPGs), is becoming a popular trend in colleges and universities to promote student mental health. In August 2024, eight schools launched the National Learning Network for Supportive Gaming Communities. These schools include Dallas College, Georgia Southern University, University of Texas at Dallas, University of Southern Indiana, Ringling College of Art and Design, Harrisburg University of Science and Technology, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and Texas Christian University (I am the Director of the TCU Advising Center, which was the host site for the Learning Network). The goal of this network is for each school to launch Support Gaming Communities (SGC), which are small groups that promote the positive benefits of TTRPGs to students. To date, schools are proving three important things about TTRPGs.
TTRPGs are popular among students
Joe LeConte is the lead trainer for the National Apprenticeship Network. He is a Substance Abuse and Recovery Counselor/Peer Support Coordinator at TCU and is considered a leading expert in the use of TTRPGs in higher education. When asked why TTRPGs are so appealing to students, Joe LeConte responded, “There are many popular media outlets, including Critical Role, Dimension 20, and many television shows, including Stranger Things and Community, that have really popularized role-playing games like Dungeons and Dragons…”
This attraction is evident for schools in the National Apprenticeship Network. Cara Guziak, senior therapist and group and workshop coordinator at UTD, said, “…the response from faculty, staff and students to our initial interest survey has been overwhelming and exciting, with more than 75 people having responded within the first few hours. to our campus-wide email! » Kristie Postorino, director of counseling at Harrisburg University of Science and Technology, proclaimed for the year that “…this was the most successful recurring group our counseling center has offered at our small school.”
TTRPGs are effective in promoting mental health
According to Joe LeConte, TTRPGs play a key role in promoting the positive aspects of mental health. He said: “In the same way an actor can play a role, a TTRPG player can take a break from everyday life and take on the role of an epic hero, a powerful wizard, a a swashbuckler or any other character he can imagine. . I believe there is relaxation and empowerment in this exercise of imagination.
Other experts have also found TTRPGs effective in this regard. Dr. Anthony Bean, renowned psychologist for Geek Therapy who numerous publications and presentations related to the gamestates that TTRPGs can benefit students in a variety of ways, including improving their social skills and teamwork, promoting identity exploration and growth, reducing stress through play and escape, and promoting problem solving and cognitive flexibility. Dr. Bean first helped trained TCU staff provide positive gaming experiences for students, and he commented, “Tabletop role-playing games like Dungeons & Dragons provide a structured environment for students to solve problems collaboratively and build relationships. These games encourage players to communicate effectively, negotiate and work as a team, skills that are directly transferable to their academic and social lives.
In addition to promoting positive skills, CMS helped students reduce loneliness and social isolation. As Kristie Postorino described it for her campus: “…we are all aware of the difficulty for students to find their people/community at university, of the demonstrated link between loneliness and increased psychological distress among students, and of the loneliness epidemic in general. that Surgeon General Vivek Murphy has prioritized. Offering CMS seemed like a fun way to address this major concern, especially for students who might not utilize traditional counseling center services.
Cara Guziak echoed this sentiment for UTD: “At the Student Counseling Center, we have first-hand experience of the increasing levels of isolation and loneliness within our student population. Our students actively seek ways to create meaningful connections in a way that single-event outreach and individual services do not satisfy. This concept of CMS appealed to us as a way to facilitate this connection while remaining available as a source of support.
TTRPGs are fun to facilitate for staff
Kristie Postorino summed up her enjoyment of hosting TTRPGs for students: “Overall, it was a fantastic experience and one I will definitely incorporate every year…it was one of the most fun and rewarding experiences I have ever had. I have experienced as a clinician. There are plans to expand the learning network to other schools next year, and Joe LeConte expressed greater ambitions: “I believe it can be very useful to students, in university settings, high schools, primary and even at older ages, as managed life care settings. I’m inspired by what we’ve already done, but I’m really inspired for the future because this idea is growing very quickly. I want to see what others are offering.