Study title

Physical Training of eSports Players 2015-2016

Dataset ID Number

FSD3510

Persistent identifier

urn:nbn:fi:fsd:T-FSD3510

Data Type

Quantitative

Authors

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

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.

Keywords

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

Topic Classification

• Social sciences (Fields of Science Classification)
• Physical fitness and exercise (CESSDA Topic Classification)
• Information society (CESSDA Topic Classification)
• Leisure, tourism and sport (CESSDA Topic Classification)

Series

Individual datasets

Distributor

Finnish Social Science Data Archive

Access

The dataset is (B) available for research, teaching and study.

Data Collector

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

Time Period Covered

2015 – 2016

Collection Dates

2015-09-01 – 2016-06-01

Nation

Finland

Geographical Coverage

Europe, North America

Analysis/Observation Unit Type

Individual

Universe

Professional and aspiring competitive eSports players

Time Method

Cross-section

Sampling Procedure

Non-probability: Purposive

Non-probability: Availability

The invitation to participate in the study was first sent to competitive eSports teams (n=161) and individuals (n=68). Later, the study was also advertised to players on, for instance, different discussion forums and Twitter. The participants were expected to have very good rankings in the games they played. For more information, see f.ex. Kari, T., & Karhulahti, V. M. (2016). Do E-athletes move?: A study on training and physical exercise in elite E-Sports. International Journal of Gaming and Computer-Mediated Simulations (IJGCMS), 8(4), 53-66.

Collection Mode

Self-administered questionnaire: Web-based (CAWI)

Research Instrument

Structured questionnaire

Data File Language

Downloaded data package may contain different language versions of the same files.

The data files of this dataset are available in the following languages: English.

FSD translates quantitative data into English on request, free of charge. More information on ordering data translation.

Number of Cases and Variables

26 variables and 115 cases.

Data Version

1.0

Completeness of Data and Restrictions

To prevent identification of respondents, the variable denoting gender was removed and extreme values in variable a2 denoting age were categorised at FSD. Additionally, variables denoting the respondent's area of residence specifically were removed and the categorisation in variable a4 denoting household composition was coarsened.

Open-ended responses of the type "other, please specify" were removed from the data during archiving.

Weighting

There are no weight variables in the data.

Citation Requirement

The data and its creators shall be cited in all publications and presentations for which the data have been used. The bibliographic citation may be in the form suggested by the archive or in the form required by the publication.

Bibliographical Citation

Karhulahti, Veli-Matti (University of Turku) & Kari, Tuomas (University of Jyväskylä): Physical Training of eSports Players 2015-2016 [dataset]. Version 1.0 (2022-02-21). Finnish Social Science Data Archive [distributor]. https://urn.fi/urn:nbn:fi:fsd:T-FSD3510

Deposit Requirement

Notify FSD of all publications where you have used the data by sending the citation information to user-services.fsd@tuni.fi.

Disclaimer

The original data creators and the archive bear no responsibility for any results or interpretations arising from the reuse of the data.

Related Materials

Kari, T., & Karhulahti, V. M. (2016). Do E-athletes move?: A study on training and physical exercise in elite E-Sports. International Journal of Gaming and Computer-Mediated Simulations (IJGCMS), 8(4), 53-66.

Related Publications

Kari, T., & Karhulahti, V. M. (2016). Do E-athletes move?: A study on training and physical exercise in elite E-Sports. International Journal of Gaming and Computer-Mediated Simulations (IJGCMS), 8(4), 53-66.

Kari, T., Siutila, M., & Karhulahti, V. M. (2019). An extended study on training and physical exercise in esports. In Exploring the Cognitive, Social, Cultural, and Psychological Aspects of Gaming and Simulations (pp. 270-292). IGI Global.