Most people are familiar with play as entertainment in the form of toys and games for children, but the same cannot be said for play as a means to energise for adults. And taking breaks to refresh during work is not something that we are generally good at, as was reflected in the results of various interviews which can be found in this thesis.


Though there are many definitions of play floating about, Van Fleet & Feeney (2015) define play as an activity or behaviour built of three characteristics: (1) goal of amusement, (2) highly interactive and (3) immersive & absorbing.

These core elements are exactly what makes play so difficult to implement, though simultaneously so valuable to employees in a work environment, which in many ways reflects the opposite of such elements. For example, in a work environment one is expected to strive for efficiency and success, whereas play aims to amuse. This thesis focuses on the conflicts that arise when playful behaviour meets the office setting, which were identified through qualitative research activities. Results of these activities indicated that there are many motives that withhold employees from using break facilities such as a ping pong table when they are offered by the company. For example, some individuals expressed that they want to spend their time efficiently, and therefore did not have time to play with such facilities. Others felt that they want to take a break at their own convenience, and gathering tools and opponents to play with, would certainly take away from that convenience. These motives formed the basis for design criteria to be used for evaluation of the design during development and a scope, which was based on two core user dilemmas:

1) I want to be fully engaged in an activity but still be mindful of those around me;

2) I want to spend time with colleagues, but I don’t want them to see my shortcomings.

Through various iterations of ideating, prototyping and testing with users (including CREFM employees and StudioLab members), a final design was created to ultimately help energise office workers through playful breaks. This concept, aptly named Button Bash, consists of interactive, modular panels featuring buttons and light, as shown on the next page. In interaction with and appearance of the product, it adds a playful character to stiff surroundings, and helps users find opportunities to recharge through active play.