Viktorie Račková

I recently completed my master’s degree in Theoretical and Research Psychology at the Faculty of Humanities, Charles University in Prague. My research focuses on the gaming experience and its influence on human behavior and cognition.

Before I started writing my bachelor’s thesis, I had no idea that I could combine my hobby of playing video games with psychological scientific research. Thanks to my thesis supervisor and our principal investigator, Lukáš Hejtmánek, I was able to do a bachelor’s thesis on a topic I know and am interested in. I investigated the influence of gaming experience on navigation skills in virtual reality.

In my master’s thesis, I focused on the creation and validation of a player typology questionnaire based on demographic data and gaming experience. The questionnaire is grounded in the established Dotazník hráčů online her, which was developed according to Bartle’s classic 1996 typology that divides players into four types: Socialiser, Killer, Achiever, and Explorer. My work aimed to refine this tool for use in psychological research and gain a deeper understanding of player motivations and preferences.

Currently, I am preparing for doctoral studies, where I plan to continue exploring the psychological aspects of video game play and their broader implications for cognitive science and human behavior. Video games are getting more popular every day and that is why I believe that researching their effect on human life is more than important these days.

During my master’s studies, I also discovered new areas that fascinate me – such as space psychology and environmental psychology. In the future, I would love to connect these interests with science communication.

Making psychological research accessible, engaging, and even fun for a wider audience is something I see as both a challenge and a mission.