I’m a Loser, Baby: Gamer Identity & Failure Dennis Ramirez, Sean Seyler, Kurt Squire, Matthew Berland University of WisconsinMadison, 1401 University Ave 2nd Floor Madison, WI 53715 Email : dennispr@gmail.com , seyler.sean@gmail.com , kdsquire@wisc.edu , mberland@wisc.edu Abstract: The objective of this study was to determine if a correlation exists between participants who selfidentify as gamers and General SelfEfficacy or feelings towards failure. A survey, posted to Reddit’s /r/samplesize community, was used to gather responses relating to “gamer” identity, selfefficacy, the most difficult test they had taken, and thoughts about failure. Educational Data Mining (EDM) techniques were used to create a predictive model of gamer identity based on the responses provided. The data suggest that participants who responded that “people are expected to fail the first time they tried something new” were more likely to selfidentify as gamers. Introduction An increased focus on assessment in schools has raised the stakes on student failure (REF). A single label of failure can be interpreted as a learning disability, which can have devastating effects on how students views themselves and how others view the student (McDermott, Goldman, & Varenne, 2006). It is no surprise that many students fear failure. A variety of research in the learning sciences suggests, however, that failure is a key to innovation and discovery (Dunbar, 1999; Schank, 1977). Dunbar found that many (if not most) scientific innovations occurred when experiments failed to go as planned. It makes sense that new knowledge would come from behaviors and models that we do not completely understand. Students avoiding failure may lose an avenue to discovery. In contrast, games celebrate failure. Games often feature low stakes situations in which failure is a necessary part of success. Players must often fail a great deal before becoming proficient in most games. For example, the Lego series (TT Games, 2005) and Kirby’s Epic Yarn (Nintendo, 2010) offer players multiple opportunities to try different solutions without risk of starting from the beginning. There are many ways to fail in each of these games, but that failure is explicitly designed to be an enjoyable part of the overall experience. Gee (2005) suggests that failure of this variety encourages  rather than prevents  risk taking and creative problem solving. Negative feedback, such as marking a paper with a red pen, have been cited as reasons why people may fear failure (Semke, 1984). This does not seem to hold true in the context of games. For example, Katamari (Namco, 2004) and Portal 2 (Valve, 2011) both have an antagonist that can be heard criticizing a player’s performance. The popularity of these games suggests that negative feedback failure (NFF) does not prevent a player from succeeding (Ramirez, 2012). In cases such as these, failure often leads to “recursive play” in which players reflect and hypothesize ways to improve (Squire, 2011). We do not fully understand why players persist in the face of failure. In this study, we explored how selfefficacy and feelings about failure predicted gamer selfidentification. To do this, we created predictive models using classification data mining techniques on survey responses. The data show a statistically significant correlation between the statement that “people are expected to fail the first time they try something new” and self reported gamer identity. Due to this correlation, we speculate that gamers perceive failure in a different way than nongamers and suggest further investigation. Background We incorporated a validated measure of selfefficacy, the General SelfEfficacy Scale (GSE), in order to gain insight on the possible link between GSE and identity as a gamer. GSE is a measure of the competence to reach certain goals and complete tasks effectively (Schwarzer & Jerusalem, 1995). The GSE is composed of ten questions on a Likert scale. These questions include “I can always manage to solve difficult problems if I try hard enough.” and “I can usually handle whatever comes my.” A key feature of the GSE is the belief that agency and persistence are responsible for successful outcomes. Because agency and perseverance are integral parts of gaming it is possible that gamers may report a higher sense of GSE which may account for their attitudes towards failure. Classification techniques organize data in regards to various userdefined structures. Therefore,