PACIFIC gamers across New Zealand, Australia and the wider Pacific are being recruited for a study examining how online gaming shapes wellbeing, identity, belonging and social relationships.
The research, led by Dr Jean M Uasike Allen of the University of Auckland, will involve Pacific people aged 16 and over who play online games. Participants can complete an online survey and, if they choose, take part in a talanoa session to discuss their experiences in greater depth.
The project comes as Pacific perspectives remain largely absent from research and public debate about gaming, despite the activity’s global reach.
“We know gaming is much more than just play,” Allen said. “For many Pacific people, online spaces can be places where relationships are formed, identities are explored, and communities are built across oceans and time zones.”
Researchers sometimes refer to online environments as a “third space”, places beyond home, school or work where people gather, form relationships and create meaning.
“For many Pacific gamers, these virtual worlds are where friendships are made, communities are formed, and identities are expressed,” she said.
“We need to understand what happens when the village goes online.”
The study will explore whether and how gaming supports friendship, cultural identity, mental wellbeing and community connection.
It will also examine the challenges Pacific gamers encounter in digital spaces and how gaming affects relationships with families and wider communities.
Allen said Pacific people had long used technology to maintain connections across geographical distances and generations, but gaming had received little attention through a Pacific lens.
“Much of what we know about gaming comes from studies conducted in North America, Europe and parts of Asia,” she said.
“Pacific communities have unique experiences and insights that deserve to be heard.”
The research builds on Allen’s earlier work on Pacific peoples’ experiences in digital spaces.
That project found that online environments could support connection, cultural belonging and community resilience, while challenging stereotypes about how Pacific communities use technology.
The new study expands on a pilot project involving Pacific young people aged 16 to 24. Older participants in the pilot expressed a strong interest in sharing their experiences, prompting researchers to broaden the age range.
Allen said the findings would contribute to a broader understanding of Pacific people as active participants in digital life, rather than treating them solely as users of technologies designed elsewhere.
“Gaming can be a powerful social space,” she said.
“We want to hear directly from Pacific gamers about what these experiences mean for them, their families and their communities.”
