Chapter Five: Where Do We Go from Here? Rethinking Library Videogame Programming Through the Feedback Loop

The feedback loop, when used to guide the development of youth videogame programming, helps to set the parameters of game play. The operative word is help because the feedback loop is fluid and dependent upon how the youth perform in the game space, how they perform during game play, and with whom they play their game. Thus, librarians must continually return to and assess their library’s videogame environment to determine what characterizes successful videogame programming: Attendance? Increased youth participation? Parental involvement? Achievement/improvement in game play? Opportunities to establish new friends? Increased youth collaboration? Increased youth interest in playing new games? The resulting definition ideally would connect to the library’s larger mission and youth interpretation of success, but once librarians determine what constitutes success in general, then they can examine the extent to which the library’s videogame programming meets (and possibly exceeds) their working definition of success. Librarians also might devise ways for the youth to create their own gaming environment, objectives, and rules, even as youth patrons adhere to larger library demands (e.g., circulation of materials, the volume of voices, use of “appropriate” language). We contend that, although librarian time warnings might be helpful at first, too much oversight and adult direction could stifle youth autonomy and self-regulation. We suggest that, to create an environment that is healthy and conducive to the concepts of self-regulated behavior and self-directed learning that are found in the feedback loop, librarians consider adopting stances that enable participants to move freely throughout the spaces while adhering respectfully to general codes of conduct.