Recommendations for Implementing Gamification for Mental Health and Wellbeing

Vanessa Wan Sze Cheng

74 citations0/0 files storedFrontiers in Psychology

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Educational Games and Gamification Innovative Human-Technology Interaction Digital Mental Health Interventions

Abstract

Gamification is increasingly being proposed as a strategy to increase engagement for mental health and wellbeing technologies. However, its implementation has been criticized as atheoretical, particularly in relation to behavior change theory and game studies theories. Definitions of the term "gamification" vary, sometimes widely, between and within academic fields and the effectiveness of gamification is yet to be empirically established. Despite this, enthusiasm for developing gamified mental health technologies, such as interventions, continues to grow. There is a need to examine how best to implement gamification in mental health and wellbeing technologies in a way that takes quick production cycles into account while still emphasizing empirical investigation and building a rigorous evidence base. With reference to game studies and the medical (eHealth/mHealth) literature, this article interrogates gamification for mental health and wellbeing by examining core properties of the game form. It then explores how gamification can best be conceptualized and implemented for mental health and wellbeing goals from conceptualization through to iterative co-development and evaluation that accommodates software development schedules. Finally, it summarizes its conceptual analysis into recommendations for researchers and designers looking to do so. These recommendations are: (1) assess suitability, (2) implement to support, (3) assess acceptability, (4) evaluate impact, and (5) document comprehensively. These recommendations aim to encourage clear language, unified terminology, the application and evaluation of theory, comprehensive and constant documentation, and transparent evaluation of outcomes.

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References

2000The "What" and "Why" of Goal Pursuits: Human Needs and the Self-Determination of Behavior 2000Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivations: Classic Definitions and New Directions 2011The behaviour change wheel: A new method for characterising and designing behaviour change interventions 2014Does Gamification Work? -- A Literature Review of Empirical Studies on Gamification 2014Gamification in theory and action: A survey 2013The benefits of playing video games.2005Half-Real: Video Games between Real Rules and Fictional Worlds 2007Persuasive Games

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2023Gamification: a Novel Approach to Mental Health Promotion 2023The Use of Gamification in the Self-Management of Patients With Chronic Diseases: Scoping Review 2021Gamification approaches for open innovation implementation: A conceptual framework 2021Ethics of Gamification in Health and Fitness-Tracking 2024RETRACTED: Gamification for Mental Health and Health Psychology: Insights at the First Quarter Mark of the 21st Century

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