Education, research & more

Doctor of Philosophy in Creative Media

City University of Hong Kong, School of Creative Media — Hong Kong, China

Game Studies and Human–Computer Interaction.

Master of Science in Communication Sciences

KU Leuven, Faculty of Social Sciences — Leuven, Belgium

Magna cum laude (81.14%).

Exchange Programme in Game Studies and Research Methods

Kyoto University, Graduate School of Letters — Kyoto, Japan

Funded by VLUHR.

Bachelor of Arts in Advertising

Sichuan University, College of Literature and Journalism — Chengdu, China

Weighted average: 86.87%.

PhD Student

City University of Hong Kong, School of Creative Media — Hong Kong, China

Supervisor: Dr. Leon Y. Xiao.

• Research on video game monetization and dark patterns in video games.

Independent Collaborator

City University of Hong Kong, Creative Media Policy Observatory — Remote

Supervisor: Dr. Leon Y. Xiao.

• Main researcher investigating dark patterns in mobile games.
• Responsible for research design, data collection, and manuscript writing.
• Participated in data analysis and conference presentations.
• Registration DOI: 10.17605/OSF.IO/YHBA9.

Research Trainee

KU Leuven, KU Leuven Digital Society Institute — Leuven, Belgium

Supervisors: Prof. dr. Bieke Zaman; Dr. Daniel Fitton (Lancaster University).

• Main researcher on the long-term impact of monetization on players.
• Participated in HCI-related research on games, gambling, and design studies.
• Designed and conducted mixed-method research with 30+ participants.
• Analyzed multimodal data and wrote scientific articles.
• Drafted funding proposals and assisted in hosting academic activities.

Master Thesis Student

KU Leuven, Faculty of Social Sciences — Leuven, Belgium

Supervisor: Prof. dr. Bieke Zaman.

• Analyzed CS:GO community discussions of loot boxes using a computational approach.
• Title: "In Case Players Were Wondering: A Topic Modelling and Sentiment Analysis Study of CS:GO Community Discussions on Weapon Cases" — Grade 17/20.

GSD (Game Sales Data) Market Analyst Intern

Sparkers — La Hulpe, Belgium

• Aggregated, manipulated, extrapolated, and validated sales data using SQL.
• Conducted 5+ customized market analyses and reports for GSD clients.
• Responsible for weekly publications across 5+ territories.
• Facilitated cross-departmental ETL automation with Python scripts and Qlik Sense.

Postgraduate Studentship

City University of Hong Kong — ~HK$ 934,800

Chinese Government PhD Fellowship (declined)

Chinese Scholarship Council 中国国家留学基金委员会 — € 64,800

Scholarship

The Flemish Higher Education Council (VLUHR) — € 4,300

Individual Second Award

Sichuan University Scholarship