ABSTRACT
If you are reading this book, chances are you are in some way involved in their creation, appreciation, or consumption. They touch all of our lives in one way or another, compelling us to play for hours and hours, providing us an income, or making us write angry letters to the editor. How we perceive games, how we play them, and most importantly, whether or not we enjoy them is guided heavily by our psychology. That said, you don’t need a degree in psychology to make good video games. Shigeru Miyamoto showed us that with the right combination of creativity and zaniness, you can mold an entire industry and have a meaningful and profound impact on literally hundreds of millions of people. Similarly, you don’t need a degree in psychology to train a dog: take a look at a professional dog trainer, for example. She uses techniques to make man’s best friend just a little more friendly. The one thing that binds these people is that both Miyamoto and the trainer are making use of psychological principles to serve a purpose-whether that purpose is to entertain us or make our dogs better companions.
