Psychology graduate designs anti-bullying board game, Xu Lin reports.

Being on the receiving end of bullying is an unpleasant, traumatic experience. It is in no way a game figuratively speaking, let alone a common theme for one in the literal sense. However, Xizi, 22, who doesn't wish to reveal her real name, in a bid to raise awareness of the issue and save others from suffering similar to her own traumatic, decadelong experience of being bullied on campus, has designed one.

The news has become a trending topic, garnering more than 160 million hits on micro-blogging platform Sina Weibo, and the board game won an award at the recent 7th iStart Children's Art Festival.

Xizi majored in psychology and graduated from a university in Guangzhou, Guangdong province, this year. She says her original aim was to raise awareness about school bullying among junior middle school students with the board game.

"I hope each teenager who has once struggled with the pain can live as bravely as he or she wants to," she adds.

As the game has received a lot of media exposure, she says she hopes that it will act as a call to action for people to pay attention to school bullying, including students, teachers, legislators and government officials.

In 2019, she was not only diagnosed with depression, but also Asperger's syndrome－a condition on the autism spectrum which affects the ability to effectively communicate with others.

She then realized that some of the characteristics of Asperger's syndrome, such as a difficulty in assessing the feelings of others, make her come across as "an unsociable person" and increase the chances that she will be marginalized.

In junior middle school, she tried hard to lose weight and used her pocket money to buy cheap skin care products as a result of verbal abuse about her appearance. In senior middle school, her demeanor was self-abased, blaming herself for being bullied, which led to poorer grades.

She's reluctant to mention her experiences, and now calls herself "a guardian of the victims of campus bullying, rather than a victim".

"I'm resolved to protect those in need of courage and love facing the scourge of school bullying head-on. I hope those who are being bullied know that they have the ability to fight back," she says.

Chinese schools offer lectures, guidebooks and psychological counseling about bullying.

Xizi suggests that Chinese schools can learn from the research-based anti-bullying programs of other countries, including KiVa from Finland and Olweus Bullying Prevention Program from Norway, which increase adult and bystander responsiveness to school bullying.

"Campus bullying is a persistent, global ailment. In some situations, the offenders don't have to pay a high price, but the victims might end up suffering for their whole lives, especially psychologically," she says.

How to make a point

Xizi has been working hard to improve the four-player board game and plans to take it to Dice Con in late October, an annual board game convention in Beijing. She's looking for board game publishers to bring the game to market.

The Choice of Transferred Students has different characters: three transferred students, a school principal, several teachers and two security staff members.

One player is the judge of the game, and three others play the roles of the students, who are the bully, the victim and the bystander respectively.

The three players have to draw from scenario cards, which are common school bullying incidents. For example, when a classmate is laughed at because he has a low score, or when someone tries to force a player to help him cheat in an exam.

They have to discuss how to respond to the scenario and they win points depending on their course of action.

The bully's attacking points, the victim's injury points and the bystander's silence points, and their individual adaptability and learning points will decide the winners and losers of the game.

Xizi has designed some fictional characters based on her own experience. The shrewd Teacher Pink will comfort those who're bullied but never take any resolute action to help them. The bystander is a straight-A student, but likes to avoid conflict with others and may turn a blind eye to bullying as a result.

There are different strategy cards for players to use, for instance, to be confident about one's appearance, or to try and make the bully sympathize with their victim.

Drawing on a new skill

The idea struck her in April when she was doing research about campus bullying, finding that dramas are often used in Western countries as a preventive measure.

"Scenes, plots, role-play, immersive experience, tactics … When I analyzed the major elements of such dramas, I suddenly realized that they constitute a board game," she says.

She is not a lover of board games, not to mention designing one. As an amateur, she has had to overcome various difficulties.

She has invested a great deal of time and effort in research, for example, delving into several board games that tackle social issues, asking board game experts for advice, and reading related books and materials. She says the core mechanics of board games, to make them fun for the players, are both wisdom and luck.

She found that campus bullying is a rare theme for board games. Magic School, a board game in Taiwan, is about students working together to fight a bully led by evil black magic.

She has had to learn how to draw from scratch in order to design illustrations for the game, revising her draft sketches many times as her understanding of drawing has deepened and adding a dash of black humor into her designs as well.

"I try my best to use simple lines to vividly demonstrate different characters and scenarios. A love for drawing is more important than skill. When drawing with passion, it seems that everything on paper comes to life," she says.

As well as her artistic ability, the process of designing the board game has also seen her attitude gradually change. At first, she felt the sadness of the victims of campus bullying, but then she tried to put herself in the shoes of the bully.

"Those who bully others don't understand how to express their emotions correctly. These children just need correct guidance," she says.

Playing the hand life deals

She's grateful to those who have helped her and encouraged her. To ensure the characters and scenarios were accurately depicted, she would consult with social workers and psychological consultants for advice.

One scenario in the game is about a student who is taunted due to his bad exam results. The players notice that he is easily distracted in class, showing a typical symptom of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

Xizi says children with ADHD are more likely to be bullied on campus because of their "unusual" behaviors. Early diagnosis and early intervention are crucial.

Her own story is also similar. But it was only in 2019 that she was diagnosed with Asperger's syndrome.

"When I interact with others, there are sure to be misunderstandings and conflicts, because those who have Asperger's syndrome communicate differently, like we're on a different channel or frequency," she says.

She undergoes psychological counseling in order to help bridge the gap. "I really want to get on well with others and I'm working hard to learn how to do that," she says.

She quotes Julie Dachez, a French social psychologist who also has Asperger's syndrome, as she says to "her fellow autistic friends" in a Ted Talk, "You're not a mistake. You're not a disease that needs to be cured. And you're (good) enough."

Content to raise awareness

It's not the first time that a board game hit the headlines because it tackles important social issues.

Last year, the Chinese version of South Korean role-playing board game Li Zhihui's Survival Game was published by Beijing-based Citic Press Group.

The game features 32 scenarios, from childhood to old age, in which a woman might face sexism or even sexual harassment.

Players have to decide how fictional Li should respond to each scenario and win points by trying their best to keep Li alive. By playing they get to experience real dilemmas that women confront throughout their lives.

"Board games are also a form of artistic expression. As for a good board game, when you really focus on the process of playing, you will be more likely to receive the message that the designer intends to deliver. You will also savor that moment with relish," says Zhao Yongquan, initiator of Dice Con board game convention.

He says Xizi has garnered attention because hers is a novel way to raise public awareness about campus bullying, adding that it's good that she has received both help and encouragement from others.

He points out, however, that the content of a board game is also paramount－whether it's great fun for players, so that the game can fulfill its function. He looks forward to seeing Xizi release her final work at the upcoming convention.

Professor Lin Xiuyun from the faculty of psychology at Beijing Normal University learned about Xizi's board game online, and says it's a more acceptable and efficient way for people to learn about campus bullying, because it's different from traditional methods. Additionally, it can help players learn a lot by playing the role of both the bully and the victim in various scenarios.