The Fun Theory: Fun as a way to Change People's Behavior | Hacker News Reader

The Fun Theory: Fun as a way to Change People's Behavior

thefuntheory.com

45 pointsbreck12 comments

Entertaining and something that may be popular at first, but unfortunately something like this isn't scalable (the novelty would wear off, not to mention cost needs to be taken into account).

The concept that fun encourages more participation is sound, but just like tourist traps it will only encourage first time use and not much after, IMHO.

Actually, I'm not sure I agree that the novelty would wear off, at least not completely. Interfaces matter. People like feedback. People like multisensory feedback even more.

Studies have shown that there are ways to design interfaces that make them seem natural and organic and appealing. Throwing the screen around on an iPhone is an example, I think. I believe the ideas in the video might make those activities intrinsically more attractive.

This might be a separate point, but can you imagine that trashcan ever accumulating garbage at its feet like in the before imagery? Do you think little kids who passed by would ever tire of throwing any trash they could find into it? I say no.

I disagree about wearing off. Sure, novelty will wear off, but it will still have an additional attraction. The perfect example is the little bullseyes people put at the bottom of urinals.

What about creative fun ? For example with the piano-stairs, it's up to the "player" to change the melody as they want.

In that situation, the novelty would wear off but people may find new ways to entertain themselves. A bit like emergent gameplay ?

My first thought too. Then I thought maybe they could think up new games indefinitely. I don't see why not. Then the really fun thing would be to see what new ideas they came up with and try them out.

Thanks for ruining it for me, pal.

Didn't mean to come off too negatively about it. While I stand by my point about the feasibility of these things, this is the type of creativity necessary to encourage better behavior with respect to the environment.

I'd agree with the two bin related ones. The stairs I think may have more staying power.

The question all videos need answer is what are the usage ratios 6 months later.

I remember seeing a urinal with a miniature propeller-like device attached to the grill at the bottom. Using a suitable jet of water, a visitor could make the propeller spin at great speed.

Apparently, these things almost eliminate spillage. The Urinal Fly is a similar concept, much simpler, but not so much fun imo.

I think there's no end to the amount of fun humans can invent. One day, every large company will have a VP of Fun.

  "Our aim is to keep this bathroom clean. Your aim would be appreciated"
  - notice in my grandmother's bathroom.

I imagine that this same concept could be useful to encourage young children (boys) to learn to go to the toilet.

Reminds me of this great (and fun!) book : A theory of fun. http://www.theoryoffun.com/

It's oriented toward game design but has some interesting thoughts about fun in general.

I wish I had +10 upvotes for this! I can't recommend Theory of Fun enough for anyone who cares about learning, life, motivation, achievement, etc.

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