Tom is passionate about teaching about social theory, digital games, play and cultures. He is the author of a forthcoming textbook ‘Welcome to Social Theory’ (Sage, 2023) which teaches complex and challenges theoretical ideas in an engaging and clear way. On his courses, Tom deploys innovative ways to teach ‘hard-to-learn/teach’ subject areas drawing, in particular, on ideas from playful learning to lead in the development of a rewarding student experience. Examples including the use of LEGO Serious Play® to support students in maximising their critical thinking. Other examples include the use of HTC Virtual Reality headsets and Ketso Kits to create enjoyable and engaging learning environments. Tom’s expertise in this area has been recognised across the University, notably through awards, nominations and student endorsements of his teaching.

Tom is a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy. 

PhD Students

• Richard Rowlinson (Games and Class)
• Joe Macleod-Iredale (Games Design and Education)
• Gemma Potter (Digital Games and Craft)
• Becky Clarke (Race, Gender and Criminalisation)
• Richard Remelie (Social Theory and Education)
• Gail Mann (Social Theory and Care)

A key area of research interest of Tom’s is how players experience digital gameplay. In particular, he has written about the experiences of ‘craft’ within gameplay, in articles such as ‘Is Gaming a Craft: Prehension, Practice and Puzzle-Solving in Gaming Labour’ (published in Information, Communication and Society) and ‘Videogaming as Craft Consumption’ (published in the Journal of Consumer Culture). Both of these papers deploy a phenomenological approach to understanding the experience of gameplay and, in particular, how games generate craft-like experiences that deliver rewarding mental and physical challenges. From here, Tom (and co-authors) argue that the experimental nature of gameplay is what motivates game consumption and that the game consumer is someone who often likes to initiate experiences of skilled labour and creative self-expression through gameplay. Tom has published work that reviews major phenomenological approaches to studying games research, identifying the similarities and differences in their theoretical and methodological approaches. 

Tom has also written critically about competitive gaming and the ‘darker’ side of play in three peer-reviewed journals. The first article: ‘Roger Caillois and Esports: On the Problems of Treating Play as Work’ (published in Games and Culture). The articles present a critical account of the impact that electronic sports has on human psychology. It argues that the pressures and demands of professional computer gaming orientate human cognition towards instrumental thinking, which in turn, feeds the exploitative ‘dog-eat-dog’ world of esports. The article presents a number of case studies to show how treating play like work ‘corrupts’ the values that players attach to games plausibly leading to a) unhealthy behaviour in the form of obsession and/or b) risky, illegal behaviour, in the form of match-fixing. In the case of the latter, it is suggested that cheating can be considered as ‘survival strategy’ within such a highly competitive working environment.

The second article: ‘Videogame Consumption: The Apophatic Dimension’ (published in the Journal of Consumer Culture). It considers how people derive satisfaction and motivation from the more negative aspects of video gameplay, particularly failure and loss. It argues that overcoming challenges in games is deeply rewarding, and may even help people deal with personal psychological issues, like anxiety or OCD. The article then extends this discussion to consider how typically problematic aspects of online gaming, e.g., ‘trolling’, can be rewarding through the creation of moments of cathartic laughter, which serve an important sociological purpose: to create and maintain social relationships.

Tom has also published research on the role of metrics in competitive gaming in the article ‘Counting Clicks: Esports, Neoliberalism and the Affective Power of Gameplay Metrics’ (published in an edited collection on Global Esports). This chapter argues that the gameplay metrics used to measure player performances in videogames enable the competitive logic of capitalism, and a neoliberal subjectivity, to circulate through esports cultures. Drawing on a case study of the esport Defense of the Ancients 2 (Dota 2), this chapter will critically consider how its metrics, like ‘actions-per-minute’, ‘match-making rank’ and ‘kills-deaths-assists’, reward neoliberal bodily performances. In particular, it shows how these metrics entangle players into a discourse of ‘competitive uncertainty’ that requires players to monitor and optimise their performances to remain competitive within game’s market.

More recently, Tom has written about the important role that ontology plays in conceptualising esports, arguing that a more comprehensive theoretical framework is required to appreciate the complexity of social causality (‘Ontology and Interdisciplinary Research in Esports’). He has also worked with Prof Garry Crawford (FRSA) on the concept of ‘fun’ in games studies literature, arguing that it needs a critical appraisal (‘Just Fun and Games? A Sociological Consideration of Fun in Video Games’). 

BBC World Service, Digital Planet Podcaston ‘NFTs in Games and the Future of Work and Leisure’, 22 Mar 2022. https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w3ct1ltk

Wired Magazine on ‘Game Studios are Turning Play into Work’, 13 Jan 2022. https://www.wired.co.uk/article/game-studios-turning-play-into-work-crypto-nfts

BBC Radio 4 on ‘Raise Your Game and Current Challenges in Digital Games Culture’, 12 Sep 2020. https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000mhxh

The Conversation on ‘The Problem of Treating Play Like Work’, 26 May 2017. https://theconversation.com/the-problem-of-treating-play-like-work-how-esports-can-harm-well-being-78366

BBC World Service, The Inquiry on ‘Are Video Games a Waste of Time?’ 28 Aug 2017. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w3csv1bv