From the course: Using Gamification to Create Learner Engagement

The science behind gamification

From the course: Using Gamification to Create Learner Engagement

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The science behind gamification

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- It might surprise you to know that there's a great deal of evidence and scientific research behind the use of gamification within organizations. In fact, a meta-analysis, which is just a study of studies, discovered over 118 different theories explaining the theoretical underpinnings of gamification. (chuckling) Don't worry, we're not going to cover all 118 theories. In fact, let's not get too academic at all. Fortunately, I've reviewed these studies so we don't have to do it here. The bottom line is simple. Gamification, when implemented correctly, has resulted in positive outcomes in areas such as positive behavioral changes, positive learning outcomes, and positive emotional or motivational outcomes. Let's look at each of these in a little more detail. Behavioral outcomes, as you might guess, are simply changes in a person's behavior as a result of a gamified experience. As an example, this might be better presentation skills as a result of a gamified app. The gamified app would give the learner feedback on their pacing and volume through points and color-coded information, resulting in a positive change in the person's volume and pacing as they presented. A learning outcome, called a cognitive outcome for us learning geeks, is a change in the person's knowledge level. Increases in knowledge obtained through gamified learning approaches can be attributed to the idea that the learner is an active participant in processing information and creating knowledge as they engage in the gamified experience. Not to mention gamification also usually includes the act of repetition, which is great for learning as well. The emotional or motivational outcomes mentioned in the study were most attributed to the motivational theory called Self-Determination Theory, or SDT. Self-Determination Theory identifies three major elements that drive human motivation in all endeavors from leisure to work experiences. The first is autonomy. This is the feeling of being in control of your own actions and decisions. With gamification, you get to decide what points to go after and how much effort to put into earning points or climbing the leaderboard. The second is competence. This is the feeling that you get when you believe you can achieve mastery over a topic or a subject. The I can do it feeling or the I got this feeling. Gamification creates this feeling, in part, by breaking larger, difficult goals into smaller, more achievable goals, and that, in turn, fosters competence. The third element of SDT is called relatedness. This is just a fancy research term for the concept of feeling connected to others. I sometimes call this peer pressure. Relatedness is the need to feel connected to others. It's the sense of belongingness to a group or community. With shared leaderboards and accomplishments, gamification helps people connect with a larger group, even if they've never met them. As you can see, there's a great deal of research and scientific theory behind gamification, making it effective for organizations of all types to improve workforce engagement and learning outcomes.

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