Development of the Game Aimed at Changing Beliefs to Work with Emotional Stress

The master's thesis «Development of a game aimed at changing beliefs for working with emotional stress» by Yulia Valerievna Shishkina and Anna Aleksandrovna Avercheva is devoted to the creation and implementation of game technology for managing emotional stress through changing beliefs. The relevance of the study is due to the increasing emotional and psychological stress faced by professionals in various fields in the modern world, which negatively affects their productivity and overall quality of life. The work begins with a theoretical analysis of the concept of emotional stress and its relationship with cognitive distortions. Cognitive distortions are defined as systematic errors in thinking that can lead to incorrect perceptions of reality and contribute to the development of emotional disorders. Gaming technologies are also being explored as a means of influencing cognitive distortions, ensuring safe user interaction with various situations and helping to increase the motivation and involvement of participants. The practical part of the work presents a methodology for developing and implementing a game to change beliefs and manage emotional stress. The game was tested on a sample of 15 social and medical workers aged 30 to 45 years. Development stages include analyzing the needs of the target audience, creating a game, conducting initial testing and receiving feedback. The main goal of the game is to develop emotional regulation skills and improve stress resistance of participants. The test results show a significant reduction in the level of emotional stress and an improvement in the participants’ ability to manage stress reactions. The introduction of games promotes the development of cognitive rethinking and emotional regulation skills, increasing resistance to stressful situations. Thus, this study demonstrates the potential of gaming technologies in psychotherapeutic practice, offering an innovative approach to working with emotional stress and making a significant contribution to the development of psychological science and practice Key words: emotional stress, cognitive distortions, gaming technologies, changing beliefs, psychotherapeutic practice, stress management, gamification, emotional regulation, game development, stress tolerance