Hello Blizzard and fellow players. I am a Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA) and my day job is modifying behaviors of students with special needs or behavior problems to assist them with their daily lives in a classroom setting. I will attempt to explain the concept of leveling through behavioral terms and what should accompany a level squish for it to be successful. However, the primary caveat is that behavioral modification is done on an individual level for a reason… our own personal learning histories and environmental variables play a big part of behavior change so trying to modify behavior on a macro level is difficult. Buckle in guys, this is gonna be a long one.
Leveling is a layer of several overlapping reinforcement schedules. Reinforcement schedules can typically be looked at in two ways, whether it’s an interval schedule (how long it takes to get something) or a ratio schedule (how much you have to do before you get something). Either schedule can be a Fixed schedule (predictable) or variable (based around an average number). For the most part, all aspects of leveling are on a Variable Ratio Schedule based around an average number of quests needed to reach the next level. However, due to the consistency of quests and how long they take… it may be easier to discuss reinforcement schedules in WoW in regards to time it takes per level and therefore a Variable Interval Schedule.
So back to leveling… here are the various reinforcement schedules:
1.) Earning a Level
2.) Earning a Skill
3.) Earning a Talent
4.) Gaining access to a new zone/expansion
5.) Gaining access to a new mount speed/flying
Now the main point of discussion is #1 because some people feel like a level is not reinforcing since it doesn’t come with anything. That may be true for you and you’re experiencing something called Ratio Strain which basically means too much work for too little reward (e.g. gaining a shiny DING! isn’t worth the effort I put in to get it). For others though, the DING! has been paired with either a skill or a talent enough times that the DING! in and of itself has become something called a conditioned reinforcer and has value.
So there are now two types of players:
- Player A that does not find the DING! reinforcing
- Player B that does find the DING! reinforcing
So what does this have to do with the level squish? If we are under the assumption that the only change is the reduction of overall levels but not overall time played to reach each skill and talent point then the only thing Blizz has done is take away the DING! reinforcer from Player B while doing nothing for Player A. Player A is already experiencing Ratio Strain by needing to play (if we are under the assumption that 15 levels is 7 hours played… feel free to provide a real number if you can) 7 hours before they get a talent point… they still need to play 7 hours to get a talent point. Therefore they still feel the same ratio strain. However, now Player B… who previously received a reinforcer every 45-60 minutes in the form of a DING! has now gone from 45-60 minutes with a reinforcer to 7 hours with a reinforcer and will also be more likely to experience ratio strain.
In order to combat ratio strain you need to do more than just provide an illusion of less work. The human mind isn’t that weak, it’ll know when it’s still doing the same amount of work for the same amount of reward. You either need to reduce the response effort so players come into contact with the reinforcer sooner (e.g. reduce time required to level) OR you need to add in additional reinforcers such as more talents, skills, transmogs, etc. (this will depend on the individual but I think I can say that we all like getting new skills and talents).
Now if you did a level squish, reduced time played and increased skills and talents… I’m confident a quick component analysis will show you that the level squish actually did nothing and it was the reduced time played and increased rewards that increased our enjoyment with the game. So yes, a level squish is essentially pointless. However, if you believe that we need a level squish to prepare for another 10 years of expansions then you need to understand that a level squish by itself will not solve any of the current problems that players are experiencing while leveling.
I hope that this has been informative. I am willing to discuss but will not argue with anyone. If anyone wants further explanation on behavior science please let me know and I will try my best. If anyone disagrees with me and demonstrates knowledge in behavioral science I am always happy to discuss ABA and Video Games because it’s uncharted territory. If you come at me with Jenny McCarthy pseudo science or disagree using a different school of thought (e.g. Psychology) I will not respond as it will generally be a waste of both of our times and neither will convince the other.
