Quad
Quad is a board game based on social norms theory designed for first-year college students. Sharing stories helps students understand each others experiences, which leads to more informed, lower-risk decision making.
The research for this project started with a specific focus on college drinking. To learn as much about the campus culture as quickly as possible, I observed tailgating (both on-foot and during a ride-along with campus police), connected with the university well-being department, and interviewed undergraduate students.
One of the early research insights was that alcohol has a biphasic effect. When someone starts drinking, alcohol has a scientifically euphoric effect. As they continue drinking, alcohol has a more depressive effect, which plays a part in many of the negative effects of binge drinking.
Initial sketches explored a wide variety of ideas, ranging from new summer orientation programs to breathalyzer wallpaper to university-branded (and controlled) alcoholic beverages.
While I was working on this project, the opportunity came up for the First Year Experience class to focus one week of curriculum on alcohol use.
The First Year Experience class at Notre Dame meets weekly in small sections of up to 18 students. There are 100+ sections of the class, taught by a variety of university employees, including faculty, student affairs staff, and athletic coaches. It would be nearly impossible to teach all the instructors the nuances of alcohol risk reduction.
A board game would encourage students to engage with each other, and create a sort of ‘self driving’ class for the instructor, requiring minimal oversight.
Board game development started with a low-fidelity model, was refined into an appearance model (lower left), and finally streamlined into an easy-to-produce and fully playable version (lower right.)
At this point, nearly 2000 first-year students have play-tested Quad. After each play-test, students complete an online evaluation to offer feedback and ideas.
Using feedback from initial play test evaluations, I refined the game to make it easier and more fun to play. I did all the design work, but a third party manufacturer fabricated these boards. The McDonald Center for Student Well-Being purchased 16 copies for use with future First Year Experience classes.
See an article from the Notre Dame College of Arts and Letters here.