Constance Steinkuehler

Constance Steinkuehler is a leading scholar in learning sciences and digital media, with a focus on how video games and online environments influence learning, culture, and education. She holds a PhD in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and bachelor’s degrees in Mathematics, English, and Religious Studies from the University of Missouri. 

Her research has examined literacy, informal scientific reasoning, and social learning in massively multiplayer online games, as well as how game-based learning environments can serve disengaged youth. At University of California, Irvine, she is professor of Informatics and co-director of the Games+Learning+Society Center, where she researches social connection, online toxicity, and designing for positive learning and societal impact through games. 

• Reitman, J. G., Anderson-Coto, M. J., Wu, M., Lee, J. S., & Steinkuehler, C. (2020). Esports Research: A Literature Review. Games and Culture, 15(1), 32–50. https://doi.org/10.1177/1555412019840892

• Steinkuehler, C. A., & Williams, D. (2006). Where Everybody Knows Your (Screen) Name: Online Games as “Third Places.” Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 11(4), 885–909. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1083-6101.2006.00300.x

• Steinkuehler, C., & Squire, K. (2023). Gaming in Educational Contexts. In Handbook of Educational Psychology (4th ed.). Routledge.

Video:

• Serious Games: The Past, Present, and Future with Constance Steinkuehler

Websites:

• University of California, Irvine

• Google Scholar