Authors

• Karhulahti, Veli-Matti (University of Turku)
• Kari, Tuomas (University of Jyväskylä)

Keywords

digital games, exercise (physical activity), physical activities, sports participation, sportspersons

Abstract

The survey charted the physical training and gaming activities of professional and aspiring competitive eSports players in Finland. The original study was conducted internationally, so the data and questionnaire are only available in English.

First, the respondents were asked whether eSports was their primary source of income and how long they had been a professional eSports player. Additionally, the respondents were asked which game they mainly played in a competitive manner, whether they played as an individual or in a team, and on which platform (e.g. computer, gaming console, smartphone) they mainly played competitively. The respondents' physical training was examined with questions on how long they spent on training in general and physical training specifically in a day, whether there was any variation in their training between on-season and off-season, and who had planned their training program. The reasons why the respondents did physical training were also surveyed, and they were asked whether they thought that doing physical training had affected their performance level in eSports. Finally, the respondents were asked whether they thought they did more physical training than their teammates and whether the physical appearance of an eSports player could influence the competitive performance of others.

Background variables included the respondent's age, level of education, household composition, level of income, and nationality.