FAQ
What’s this project about?
The aim of this project is to gain comprehensive insights into the factors that influence the development of chess expertise across the lifespan.
Previous research has already revealed some factors that have an impact on playing strength. Among them are different practice activities, personality factors (including motivation), some aspects of emotional intelligence, and competencies in dealing with numerical and figural-spatial information. The relative importance of these factors and their interplay during chess career, however, are still unknown. To this end, we conduct this research.
For more information on the scientific background, please see below (link).
Who can participate?
All chess players registered in the FIDE database (https://ratings.fide.com/) or having a national ELO-Score (ECF or USCF).
What do participants have to do?
Complete an online study of about 35-45 min.
This study consists of questionnaires on some demographic information (such as FIDE ID, name, handedness, age), chess-related motivation, personality, and emotional intelligence. In addition, in three very short tasks, we assess the competencies to solve problems with numbers and figural-spatial objects. Finally, the study includes questions about your chess-related practice activities. In particular, we ask you to estimate your engagement in different practice activities throughout your chess career.
What is my benefit of participation?
First, spending 35-45 minutes of your time to participate in this online study can provide the basis for substantial new insights into factors that are beneficial to develop chess expertise. These insights will have important implications for chess training.
Second, we offer an individual feedback on your scores compared to the other international chess players participating in this online study. In particular, we can inform you on your relative position regarding chess-related motivation, numerical, figural-spatial, and arithmetic abilities, personality profile, emotional intelligence, and practice activities. This feedback can help to better understand factors influencing your own chess career.
Is my personal data safe?
Absolutely. All statistical analyses will be conducted using an anonymous dataset, and all results will be published in anonymized form. All data from the study are stored in a secure and encrypted file.
What happens if I decide to terminate my participation?
You can terminate your participation at any time and without giving a reason. In the event of termination, all study data from you will be deleted. Termination carries no disadvantages.
How can I contact the researchers for further information?
Please write an e-mail to chess-study(at)uni-graz.at. We will reply as soon as possible.
Roland H. Grabner, University of Graz, Austria
Merim Bilalic, Northumbria University Newcastle, UK
Nemanja Vaci, The University of Sheffield, UK
I would like to know more about the scientific background.
Hereinafter you will find selected press reports and research work by the researchers. If you need further information, please contact us by email at chess-study(at)uni-graz.at.
