Escape room psychology
How can unlocking the power of your mind help unlock these puzzle rooms?
Your time starts… now. Trapped in a locked room with just 60 minutes ticking down on the clock, where do you begin in the search for freedom? It might not be a life or death situation, but the unfamiliar surroundings and growing intensity could convince you otherwise. It is this realistic urgency that gets you and your team springing into action in a problem-solving frenzy.
This is an escape room – a live-action game that puts your actions in charge of the outcome. The clues are all around you. You just need to know where to look. Taking on the room puts your brain to the test as you battle against the time pressure, confinement and puzzles of ranging complexity. A good team will be able to work well together, understanding each other’s strengths and weaknesses and using them to their advantage. These unique missions give players the opportunity to be the heroes of the event. Everybody goes into these rooms hopeful that their team will be leaving triumphant, but in reality many succumb to the psychological challenges that come with the desperation to escape and beat the challenge.
Being locked in a room may seem like an unusual recreational activity choice, so what is it about this experience that gives us such a thrill? Forced to think quickly, teams usually keep bouncing ideas off each other as they pace around the limited space. This movement in the body and brain has been shown to create a similar effect to going for a walk, as it releases the happy hormone, dopamine. Combined with the adrenaline released during an intense race against time, the energy can be contagious. As it passes through the team, the whole group’s mood can be lifted, even in those who fail.
Clues don’t always rely on a sharp eye. With thousands of escape rooms multiplying around the world, escape room managers are finding new ways to engage players. Many involve a range of sensory clues, stimulation that helps to awaken the body and keep different pathways in the brain active.
Above all, escape rooms provide an area to get to know your friends or coworkers better. You may even be playing along with strangers. Finding out how other people’s brains work, learning from each other and working as a team to achieve a common goal can give people a sense of purpose, build relationships and hopefully leave people walking away filled with pride and accomplishment.