"It was easy to know what I've done wrong": Designing Systems for Transparency and Accountability for Improved Toxicity Moderation in Online Games

Toxicity is prevalent in many online games, undermining the experience for the players. Existing moderation and reporting systems often fail to meet players’ needs, as they are not transparent and do not help toxic players improve their behavior. In this paper, we present an artifact-contribution, for which we designed and developed two novel systems that encourage accountability and transparency. The systems 1) prompt toxicity offenders to reform and reflect on their actions by awarding badges to players who pledge to behave better, and 2) focus on immediate, specific, and continuous feedback for players who have received reports. We conducted a design probe with 12 participants to assess the effectiveness and usability of the proposed systems compared to a baseline system. For this, the systems were embedded in narrative, interactive scenarios that simulated the environment of a MOBA game. Findings showed that both systems significantly outperformed the baseline in accountability and transparency, which was complemented by qualitative data providing insights into the reasons. Our findings can serve as an important step toward combating toxicity and fostering positive behaviors in games.