Abstract

The present study aimed to determine the degree to which play elements have an “open function”, and whether children are attracted to them. The architect van Eyck hypothesized that play elements with an open function attract playing children because such elements do not suggest a certain type of behavior and are, thus, likely to stimulate the children’s creativity. Children of three different age groups (5-6, 7-8, and 11-12 years of age) played freely in a Parkour playground that consists of play elements that were supposed to vary in the degree of having an open function. Based on the judgments of parents on what action children will mainly perform on each of the elements, we concluded that the play elements indeed differed in the degree of having an open function. The play behavior, however, revealed that the children were less attracted to elements with an open function. The implications of these findings are discussed.

摘要

本研究旨在确定游戏元素具有“开放功能”的程度，以及是否吸引儿童。建筑师范·艾克（van Eyck）假设，具有开放功能的游戏元素会吸引儿童玩耍，因为此类元素并不代表某种行为类型，因此很可能会激发儿童的创造力。三种不同年龄段（5-6岁，7-8岁和11-12岁）的孩子 岁以下的孩子们）可以在Parkour操场上自由玩耍，操场上的玩耍元素本应具有开放功能的程度。根据父母对孩子将在每个元素上主要执行什么动作的判断，我们得出结论，游戏元素的确具有开放功能的程度不同。然而，游戏行为表明，孩子们对具有开放功能的元素的吸引力降低了。讨论了这些发现的含义。